Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate

Re:Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate by spamizbad on Sunday October 22, 2023 @11:25PM (#37981260)

I actually don't understand the logic of lighter policing resulting in fewer reported crimes. I can see it possibly resulting in police discovering or interrupting fewer crimes, and I can see it resulting in fewer arrests, but the idea that you're not going to report a burglary because your local politician is seen as soft on crime doesn't make sense to me - for starters, you'll need that police report to make an insurance claim.

What I can see causing a drop in reported crime is a lack of trust between police and a community - people may choose not to get the police involved out of fear they will make the situation worse, overreact, or may deem the punishment too harsh.

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Re:Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate by sologoub on Sunday October 22, 2023 @11:36PM (#37981330)

If you don’t expect the police to do anything about it, why file a formal report?

It’s possible to even go to the station, speak with the on duty officer, find out that they’ll basically do nothing and decide to not waste any more time on that. Such a conversation will not show up in any statistics, ditto an equivalent phone call.

For substantial losses, insurance claims make more sense. If it’s something that’s close in cost to the deductible and you expect your insurance premiums to go up after a claim, most people would not even submit that - there is not much pay off and higher premiums to worry about. So a lot of these costs are basically absorbed by the victims and statistics end up looking better than they should.

In my general area, 20-30 years ago, I’d sometimes forget to close the front door when I left (as in wide open, visible from the street). Nothing ever happened. A year ago, I forgot to lock the car at night - interior got ransacked and turned upside down. There wasn’t anything of value in there, but it sure left me feeling a lot less safe…

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Re:Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate by ncallaway on Monday October 23, 2023 @12:21AM (#37981582)

> If you don’t expect the police to do anything about it, why file a formal report?

Because your insurance demands a formal report (because if you lie to the police it's a marginally more serious crime than if you lie to your insurance agent).

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Re:Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate by sologoub on Monday October 23, 2023 @09:37AM (#37985421)

Only, if the claim is worth it - most people have a deductible and insurance premiums will go up after a claim, so damage has to be substantial. That still leaves a lot of room for crime that didn’t result in enough damage on a given incident to justify a claim, but ensures the community does not feel safe and still goes unreported in these statistics.

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Re:Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate by drawnwren on Sunday October 22, 2023 @11:35PM (#37981318)

I was robbed 3 times in SF. The first time was your run of the mill vehicle break in. Police clearly gave no fucks and weren’t going to do anything. Other two were in person. Stuff wasn’t insured. I didn’t bother with reports.

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Re:Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate by MattGaiser on Sunday October 22, 2023 @11:28PM (#37981271)

People are fickle. I know people who won't apply for rebates as "the government would never give money to little people." Hundreds of dollars a form away and they just don't.

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Re:Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate by dzink on Sunday October 22, 2023 @11:42PM (#37981368)

Lighter policing can lead to more vigilante justice. That would be violent and un or under reported.

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Re:Killings in the U.S. are dropping at a historic rate by galangalalgol on Monday October 23, 2023 @12:28AM (#37981641)

Short sentences that put thieves back in a neighborhood can cause the same thing. Anecdotally some Kenyan neighborhoods get tired if this and entrap thieves with goods left out, then the neighbors beat them, and apparently on occasion burn them to death with gasoline.

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