The U.S. crime rate is about the same as it was in 1970, but our incarceration rate is nearly five times higher. Those on both the left and the right have bought into a conventional wisdom that emphasizes drug offenses over violent crimes. Calling someone convicted of a violent crime a “violent offender” suggests that this identity is who he is: He is a violent person. Hot spots with extra patrols experienced a 23% drop in violent crime relative to those that didn’t. Much violent crime, especially physical violence like murder, is more the result of spontaneous outbursts of anger than of calculated planning.

Source: Wall Street Journal January 27, 2017 16:59 UTC