Kerby Anderson

No doubt you have heard the phrase, “crime doesn’t pay.” Unfortunately, as I explain in my booklet, A Biblical View on Criminal Justice, crime has historically paid only too well. Expected punishment can be calculated by multiplying four probabilities: the probability of being arrested, of being prosecuted, of being convicted, and going to prison.

Those probabilities have dropped significantly in cities where the slogan “defund the police” has changed the equation. You can find videos of criminals shoplifting and casually walking out of stores in broad daylight. Some commentators have come up with a term for this action: low-speed looting.

Last year we saw lots of examples on television of looting and rioting in major cities. Leftist politicians and even the media referred to such wanton behavior as “peaceful protests.” Once these criminal acts were redefined, it shouldn’t be surprising that we got more of them. The best way to make crime pay is through deterrence. The best way to increase crime is to make excuses for criminal behavior while also reducing police budgets.

J.T. Young served as a congressional staff member and in the Department of the Treasury and the Office of Management and Budget. He points to cities like Chicago, Baltimore, Portland, and Washington, DC where so many crimes occur that it is nearly impossible to keep track of all of them.

He points to one other reason for the crime spike: critical race theory. Any attempt to enforce society’s laws is labelled a “manifestation of oppression.” We see this in the recent calls to “defund the police” and the previous calls for the “abolition of ICE.” Rampant crime and an open border are the next result.

If we want to lower the crime spike, we need deterrence and a focus on law and order.