What does the available evidence have to say about whether increased reliance on prisons is a viable explanation for the drop in crime in the 1990s?
In the 1990s a large increase in prison population is linked to increase punishment with lower crime rates. Criminals that did petty crimes that normally were set free were now being locked up, violent crimes were locked up longer. In the year 2000 two million people were in prison. Prisons are expensive, however the increase in prison population accounts for one-third of the crime drop.
The number of police officers increased, as an example in New York City, these police officers were held accountable, worked in crime Hot Spots and fixed broken windows. The