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A long theoretical literature in economics addresses the heavy reliance of the U.S. criminal justice system on very expensive forms of punishment - prison - when cheaper alternatives - such as fines and other sanctions - are available. This paper analyzes the role of fines as a criminal sanction...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013137008
Researchers have long used repeated cross sectional observations of homicide rates and sanctions to examine the deterrent effect of the adoption and implementation of death penalty statutes. The empirical literature, however, has failed to achieve consensus. A fundamental problem is that the...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013120198
We describe the evolution of selective aspects of punishment in the US over the period 1980-2004. We note that imprisonment increased around 1980, a period that coincides with the "Reagan revolution" in economic matters. We build an economic model where beliefs about economic opportunities and...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013121076
Like other states, minorities are disproportionately represented in the California's state prison system, particularly for drug offenses. Unlike other states, California has had a policy of mandatory diversion to drug treatment for non-violent drug offenders since mid-2001 (Proposition 36)....
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10013098145
-criminal type, while past criminal experience raises current criminal activity for both types. Also, the age crime profile peaks at …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012780130
In order to lengthen prison terms, many U.S. states have limited parole boards' traditional authority to grant early releases. I develop a framework in which the welfare effects of this reform depend on (1) the elasticity of future recidivism with respect to time in prison, (2) the accuracy of...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012759857
The perception that immigration adversely affects crime rates led to legislation in the 1990s that particularly …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012759961
We observe that countries where belief in the quot;American dreamquot; (i.e., effort pays) prevails also set harsher punishment for criminals. We know from previous work that beliefs are also correlated with several features of the economic system (taxation, social insurance, etc). Our objective...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012760591
Previous studies of the impact of changes in prisoner populations on crime rates have failed to adequately control for … the simultaneity between those two variables. While increases in the number of prisoners are likely to reduce crime …, rising crime rates also translate into larger prison populations. To break that simultaneity, this paper uses the status of …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012763746
is little support, therefore, for the `broken windows' theory of Wilson and Kelling (1982). Yet, perceptions do respond … to changes in an individual's own criminal and arrest history. Young males who engage in crime but are not arrested … to engage in crime during subsequent periods. Following an arrest, individuals commit less crime, consistent with …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10012767770