Crime and the Economy
The Unseen Cost
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There has been much discussion lately of the direct costs of the criminal justice system. Many people (too many, in my opinion) of conservative leanings have been sipping the soft-on-crime Kool-Aid because they are appalled by the high costs of locking up the very large number of criminals we have, and they have been too quick to accept the line that they aren't really that bad.
As long as we are talking dollars, we must not forget the economic costs of crime. Crime causes people to spend time, effort, and money on unproductive self-defense measures that could be spent more productively. Crime causes people to abandon or sell cheaply real estate that could be much more valuable. Crime is a drag on the economy, like driving with one foot resting on the brake pedal while the other pushes the accelerator.
Stockton, California is a chronically depressed city. Its government is just emerging from bankruptcy, and Forbes infamously branded it America's most miserable city a few years back. Yet this weekend a developer actually got a group of people to come out from San Francisco, interested in possibly relocating to a building he is renovating downtown. For those unfamiliar with intra-California regional attitudes, let me assure you that to get anyone in San Francisco interested in Stockton is huge.
A few hours later the developer was found dead in a downtown Stockton street, apparently murdered. Joe Goldeen has this story in the Stockton Record. What do the potential buyers think now?
It will be a while before we have confirmation that this is a homicide and then more time before we know who did it and why. Whether the specific crime can be causally linked to the misguided policies of California's current government is also unknown at this time.
Even so, we are seeing more indications as time goes on that the trends we have decried on the Crime and Consequences blog are having their expected effect. There is a lag between policy and effect, a further lag between effect and official statistics, and a yet another lag between the availability of data and studies that provide a solid basis for an inference of causation. So all we have for now is preliminary information. Yet what we do know is not good.
Attacking the police and abandoning the policies that brought down crime are having their effects. Those effects fall most harshly on the direct victims of crime, but the economy as a whole is also a victim. Turning criminals loose is not free. Sending a message that crime can be committed with impunity is not free. There is a cost in blood and a cost in dollars. People who care about a robust economy need to understand this.
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Cross-posted from Crime and Consequences blog.
Partner, Baker Hostetler LLP
David Rivkin is a member of the firm's litigation, international and environmental teams and is co-leader of the firm's national appellate practice. He has extensive experience in constitutional, administrative and international law litigation and has been involved in numerous high-profile cases. With his prior experience in the government sector, David draws on a wealth of knowledge when providing compliance advice to companies and handling enforcement proceedings before government agencies on issues arising out of multilateral and unilateral sanctions, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), anti-boycott issues, bankruptcy and financial fraud matters, and environmental and energy issues.
David has developed and implemented legislative, regulatory and litigation initiatives for two presidential administrations. Over the years, he has published hundreds of articles, op-eds, book reviews and book chapters on a variety of international, legal, constitutional, defense, arms control, foreign policy, environmental and energy issues for various newspapers and magazines, including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The New York Times, USA Today and The Los Angeles Times, and has been a frequent commentator and guest on TV and radio shows including ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News, NPR and PBS.
Legal Director & General Counsel, Criminal Justice Legal Foundation
Kent S. Scheidegger has been the Legal Director of the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation since December 1986. He also served as Chairman of the Criminal Law Practice Group of the Federalist Society 2003 to 2005. His articles on criminal and constitutional law have been published in law reviews, national legal publications, and congressional reports. Legal arguments authored by Mr. Scheidegger have been cited and incorporated in several precedent-setting United States Supreme Court decisions.
After receiving a degree in physics with honors from New Mexico State University in 1976, Mr. Scheidegger served for six years in the United States Air Force as a Nuclear Research Officer. He took his law degree with distinction from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in 1982 and practiced civil law in Northern California. He was general counsel of California Cooler, Inc. from 1984 until 1986, when he joined the Foundation.