E. Eide, "Economics of Criminal Behavior" in B. Bouckaert and G. De Geest (eds.), THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LAW AND ECONOMICS, 4 vols. (London: Edward Elgar, 2000).

IV. The Criminal Justice Non-System

The criminal justice system is made up of the police, prosecutors and public defenders, the courts, and corrections (probation, jails and prisons, and parole). The various entities that make up the system are funded by different level of government and are generally poorly integrated in terms of either decision making or policy.

For a description of the criminal justice systems of various countries see

G. Newman (ed.), Global Report on Crime & Justice, New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.

  A. The Police

  The major issues for most police departments are: (1) how to deal with terrorism threats, (2) how to deal with racial and ethnic minorities (e.g., recruiting more minorities), (3) community policing (4) drugs, (5) juvenile crime & gangs and  (6) the use and integration of modern technology.

L. Drake & R. Simper, "The Economic Evaluation of Policing Activity: An Application of a Hybrid Methodology," European Journal of Law and Economics (November, 2001) 173-192.

  B. Prosecution and Public Defense

Funds for public defenders in the US have been very scarce. Prosecutors are overloaded which often leads to "selective prosecution" and plea-bargaining.

F. Feeney, German & American Prosecutions: An Approach to Statistical Comparison, (Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, 1998)  

R. Iyengar, "An Analysis of the Performance of Federal Indigent Defense Counsel," NBER working paper #13187, 2007. Available at: http://papers.nber.org/papers/W13187

  C. Courts

  The big issues here are (1) delays and backlogs, (2) drug offenses (the courts particularly the federal courts are overwhelmed with drug cases), and (3) determinate sentencing/sentencing guidelines.

Marvin Frankle, a former federal judge, is the father of the sentencing guideline idea. You might read his original proposal which he published in a short book. The federal government and a number of states such as Minnesota use sentencing guidelines.

A. Polinsky & S. Shavell. 2000. "The Economic Theory of Public Law Enforcement," Journal of Economic Literature, vol. 38 (2000), 45-76.

 D. Corrections

During the 1970s, the idea that prisoners could be rehabilitated while in prison came under attack. During the 1980s many states abandoned their practice of sentencing offenders to indeterminate sentences (e.g., 3 to 5 years) and adopted a determinate sentencing policy which provided a narrow range of sentencing options. A number of states also severely limited or abolished parole. These trends resulted in an upsurge in prison population which is only now starting to taper off. The "three strikes your out" laws exacerbated this trend.

As the full costs of increasing the prison population became apparent to legislators, there was a search for cheaper sentencing alternatives. Boot camps and electronic surveillance are two of the more popular alternatives.

The substantial increase in spending for prisons that occurred in the US during the last 30 years led to a movement to privatize prisons . This  movement has raised substantial controversy. Tennessee has produced a very favorable report on its private prisons, but private prisons in New York and Louisiana have been closed down for unreasonable conditions. You might study the pros and cons of public v. private provision of prisons. A number of firms that provide prison services are public corporations (e.g., Correctional Corporation of America, Wackenhut). You might want to check out their annual reports and other public filings.

K. Avio. “The Economics of Prisons,” European Journal of Law and Economics, vol 6 (September, 1998).

VIII. Policies to Combat Crime

Crime will always be with us, but good policies can help to keep the level of crime at an acceptable level. The best hope of achieving this objective seems to lie in prevention. Some intensive, early, child/family interventions have been shown to reduce future criminality. The Job Corp, an intensive, residential program for young adults, also seems to reduce criminality. Weak interventions seem doomed to have no significant effect. For example  job programs carried out under the Manpower Development and Training Act have no significant effect on criminality.

B. Walsh, D. Farrington & L. Sherman (eds.). 2001.Costs & Benefits of Preventing Crime. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

S. Aos, et al. 2006. Evidence-Based Public Policy Options to Reduce Future Prison Construction, Criminal Justice Costs, and Crime Rates. Seattle, WA: Washington State Institute for Public Policy.

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• Ann Witte, AWitte@Wellesley.edu
• Economics
• Date Created: November 3, 1999
• Last Modified: September 6, 2009
• Expires: January 15, 2009

© Ann Dryden Witte, 1997, 1999, 2007