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Cameras, crime reduction and cost

Do surveillance cameras in public spaces reduce crime and are they worth the cost?I've been highly skeptical of claims by Dallas police that new surveillance cameras downtown have radically reduced crime, mainly because their results dramatically contradict the experience in other jurisdictions that have used such cameras from a long time. Typically, DPD officials simply state that crime has declined because of cameras with no documentation and the Dallas News dutifully reports it without delving into specifics.So I was unsurprised to see this story in the Dallas News yesterday by Steve Thompson, "Dallas surveillance cameras cut crime but are costly to monitor," claiming that in areas covered by cameras downtown, "crime there so far this year is down 11 percent from 2008...continue to full post

Full post as published by Grits for Breakfast on April 22, 2009 (boomark / email).