If you've never experienced the indifference of a cop taking a property crime report and the complete lack of follow up, just pick a place and you can look at non-violent crime clearance rate.
I don't think it's something you can lay at the feet of the SF Police Department. I asked Pete McLaughlin, SFPD (retired), why the police don't go after bike thieves more aggressively.
"Our hands are tied," he said. "They [the thieves] know the most we can do is give them a citation, and they'll be out that afternoon."
California has a history of being lenient with non-violent crime, which is appropriate in some cases, but maybe not in others. Maybe leniency is the wrong approach for some of these bike thieves.
But it's complicated. I heard Jerry Brown (former California Governor) talk about how ~10% of the state budget goes to prisons, and he's not comfortable with such a large amount, and I agree--throwing people in jail is expensive!
Asking a cop about why they didn't do their job is like asking a dev how their bug ended up in prod. You'll get an answer, but it will neither sate your desire for improvement, or actually shed light on any systemic issues.
As it happens I experienced exactly this scenario when a homeless person broke into my house while I was asleep, stole a bunch of stuff, and then made off with my car. The cop certainly didn't solve all my problems but they were clear about what they needed to know and what I'd need to do if I wanted to hear back from the city when the person was found. If the police in your area don't care it seems far more likely that they either don't feel allowed to police effectively or they feel their efforts will be wasted.
They really don't care.