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Still, you must ask yourself, what does it mean to criminalize theft when huge segments of the population either does it, or has the privile of not needing it, or is an supposedly unwitting beneficiary. If I indirectly aid a possibly criminal act to feed my family, why are my spouse and children more innocent than someone who lacks a criminal benefactor?

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Theft from grocery stores, while technically illegal, is a rather light shade of crime. Some police will just pay for the groceries: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/12/officer-buys-eggs-f...

At least as reported, petty theft seems quite rare; poor people qualify for food stamps, food banks, etc., or just beg/panhandle for money, so there aren't many cases. This profile of them suggests most shoplifters do it more for the thrill than any kind of necessity: http://www.shopliftingprevention.org/what-we-do/learning-res...

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