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CRIME is down. Much has been made of that, especially in big cities like New York. For the nation, FBI statistics show a 9 per cent decline in the crime rate between 1990 and 1995; preliminary data indicate another drop in the first six months of 1996.

Criminologists are reaching for explanations. Some credit a change in drug habits, with crack users switching to heroin, which does not induce violent behavior and is fairly cheap these days. Former New York Police Commissioner William Bratton insists policing is more effective. Clamping down on minor offenses—the Broken Window thesis—seems to have squelched more serious crime.

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Ed Rubenstein

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CRIME is down. Much has been made of that, especially in big cities like New York. For the nation, FBI statistics show a 9 per cent decline in the crime rate between 1990 and 1995; preliminary data indicate another drop in the first six months of 1996.

Criminologists are reaching for explanations. Some credit a change in drug habits, with crack users switching to heroin, which does not induce violent behavior and is fairly cheap these days. Former New York Police Commissioner William Bratton insists policing is more effective. Clamping down on minor offenses—the Broken Window thesis—seems to have squelched more serious crime.