Revisiting Broken Windows: Connecting Theory to Policy for America's Public Safety

Across America’s cities, crime is rising–but it’s an inconsistent and strange picture. While some cities are seeing only modest increases in murder rates, “quality of life” crimes–from “smash and grab” robberies to auto theft and property damage are consistently exploding. It brings to mind the work of social scientists, James Q. Wilson and George Kelling, best known by the phrase, “broken windows theory”. Looking at the growing crime rates in American cities back in the 1970s, Wilson and Kelling concluded that the reduction in enforcement of lower-level property crimes created a foundation of lawlessness that enabled higher degrees of felony.

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