NCJ Number
86555
Journal
Vanderbilt Law Review Volume: 35 Issue: 3 Dated: (April 1982) Pages: 527-540
Date Published
1982
Length
14 pages
Annotation
A survey of law enforcement approaches to reducing crime concludes that methods such as increasing arrest rates and sentences are insufficient and only a dual emphasis on law enforcement and crime prevention can solve America's crime problems.
Abstract
U.S. statistics on committed felonies, successful felony arrests, and dispositions indicate that the difference between proof of probable cause which suffices for arrest and proof beyond reasonable doubt required for a conviction will yield a dismissal rate of between 35 and 60 percent of all prosecutions. Comparable figures from Austria and Germany which have fewer constitutional restraints suggest that improved evidence gathering produces only minor advancements in the conviction rate. The alternative of arresting more offenders is unrealistic because of financial and political considerations. Some States have espoused the theory that increased prison sentences can reduce crime. However, the 1973 New York State drug law imposing mandatory minimum sentences on drug offenders has not decreased drug-related crime, while comparative statistics on homicide rates in States with and without the death penalty fail to demonstrate any deterrent effect for the death sentence. Larger prison populations are costly for society in terms of taxpayers' dollars, ineffective rehabilitation programs, and intolerable prison conditions. A fundamental flaw in any approach that focuses on increasing law enforcement is that the process become operational after a crime is committed and is applied too late in the lives of offenders. Historical studies of crime reveal that the relevant factor in the crime rate is not the offender's color, but being at the bottom of society. Thus, society must pay more attention to crime prevention by reaching crime-prone youths from the ghettos before their lifestyles are fixed. The basic issue is not whether such reforms can be accomplished, but whether society is willing to make the necessary commitments to improve social conditions which promote crime as well as the criminal justice system. The paper provides 47 footnotes. For related material, see NCJ 86552.