Numbers
TO say that the recent robberies and burglaries were “caused” by the economic downturn is an insult to the vast majority of low-income individuals who do not commit crimes. Many of them have chosen to tap welfare programs and services or to look for jobs with the assistance of the CNMI Department of Labor. And many more are availing themselves of — thanks to scholarship programs — virtually free education that includes trades and workforce training as well as college degrees.
As author and Harvard professor James Q. Wilson has noted, “crime rose the fastest in [the U.S.] when the number of persons living in poverty or squalor was declining.”
In the CNMI, those who are “concerned” about the crimes reported recently may want to check out Variety’s front-page news stories when the economy was booming in the 1990s. Spoiler alert: plenty crime stories. But back then, DPS conducted press briefings from Monday to Friday. Copies of the daily blotter were provided to reporters, for free. These daily briefings stopped around the time the economy tanked in the late 1990s. (Some officials apparently believed that the daily crime stories were “turning off” prospective tourists.)
Today, it is DPS that chooses which crime stories to share with the public — and when. Not surprisingly, many of those who follow the news assume that no crimes are occurring when there are no news reports about them.
DPS should once again conduct daily press briefings. The department should also share information about the islands’ annual crime rates. The last time it did so was 20 years ago, and the data showed that from a high of 7,411 in 1999, the number of offenses reported to DPS plummeted to 3,707 in 2012, which was a bad year for the CNMI economy.
Today’s actual crime numbers may surprise us, but not in a bad way.
Accountability
MORE often than not, committing crimes is a choice freely made by perpetrators. Hence, they must be held responsible for their acts. Regarding the recent crimes reported by DPS, the defendants, more likely than not, are repeat offenders.
In his insightful book, “Thinking About Crime,” Harvard professor James Q. Wilson pointed out that “many persons believe that crime produces higher incomes with less effort than available legitimate jobs.” For some, stealing is more “rewarding” than working. But authorities can deter crime by raising its risks. A criminal usually commits a crime because he believes he can get away with it. The authorities’ job is to make sure he doesn’t.
As for those who cling to the ever fashionable notion that “crime can only be dealt with by attacking their root causes,” Professor Wilson said: “I have yet to see a ‘root cause’ or…a government program that has successfully attacked it, at least with respect to those social problems that arise out of human volition” — i.e., choice. Moreover, he said, “the demand for causal solutions…is a cast of mind that inevitably detracts attention from those few things that governments can do reasonably well and draws attention toward those many things it cannot do at all.”
The authorities, alas, cannot seem to enforce the anti-littering or other well-intentioned laws. But they can arrest criminals and, through the justice system, hold them accountable. The authorities should increase their efforts in that area.
