From: ahk@chinet.com   
      
   Stephen Sprunk  wrote:   
   >On 02-Aug-14 12:45, Adam H. Kerman wrote:   
   >>Stephen Sprunk  wrote:   
      
   >>>The main factor [in crime rates] today is the number of cops per   
   >>>capita.  For instance, among large cities, NYC has the most cops   
   >>>per capita and the lowest murder rate, while Dallas has the fewest   
   >>>cops (1/2x NYC) and highest murder rate (2x NYC).  And the number   
   >>>of cops is determined by tax/economic policies, so again it boils   
   >>>down to money.   
      
   >>Do New York cops walk beats, or are they pulled away for special   
   >>events and traffic, and all too often just acting like security   
   >>guards and spooks? Cop walking a beat, if he's useful, may have some   
   >>effect on crime, but the rest of it is window dressing.   
      
   >Cops walking/driving a beat increases the _perception_ that criminals   
   >will be caught, changing the subconscious risk/reward analysis.   
      
   Not what I'm getting at. Cops walking a beat can establish rapport with   
   people who live and work there; driving a beat, cops are aloof. When you   
   establish rapport, there's a greater likelihood of witnesses coming   
   forward and people seeing cops as a solution instead of a problem. As   
   far as criminal behavior, they get better at hiding, I suppose.   
      
   >Just as important, though, are the detectives who investigate crimes   
   >and _actually_ catch the offenders.   
      
   Investigation is about punishment, not prevention. The vast majority of   
   offenders, in the heat of the moment committing a violent crime, aren't   
   considering the consequence of punishment for themselves.   
      
   >I don't know how it is in NYC, but in Dallas, if you report a crime,   
   >they'll try to discourage you from filing a report (or even refuse to   
   >accept it), and if you do manage to get one filed, they'll tell you that   
   >they're so overworked that nobody will do anything about it.  I can't   
   >believe that such a scenario has no impact on crime rates.   
      
   Snarf. Do they also move the dead body across jurisdictional boundaries   
   to get the crime rate lower?   
      
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