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The Rise and Fall of Violent Crime in America PDF

433 Pages·2016·19.507 MB·English
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Rise Fall The and of Violent Crime America in B A R R Y L A T Z E R STARTING IN THE LATE 1960S, the United States suffered the biggest sustained rise in violent crime in its history. In some locales, people dreaded leaving their homes at any time, day or night, and many Americans spent part of each day literally looking over their shoulders. How could things have gotten so bad? Why did they get better? This book—the definitive history of crime from World War II to the twenty-first century—provides the answers. The Rise and Fall of Violent Crime in America The Rise and Fall of Violent Crime in America Barry Latzer Encounter Books New York • London © 2016 by Barry Latzer All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Encounter Books, 900 Broadway, Suite 601, New York, New York 10003. First American edition published in 2016 by Encounter Books, an activity of Encounter for Culture and Education, Inc., a nonprofit, tax-exempt corporation. Encounter Books website address: www.encounterbooks.com Manufactured in the United States and printed on acid-free paper. The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48–1992 (R 1997) (Permanence of Paper). first american edition library of congress cataloging-in-publication data Latzer, Barry, 1945– The rise and fall of violent crime in America / Barry Latzer. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-59403-835-8 (hardcover : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-59403-836-5 (ebook) 1. Violent crimes—United States—History. 2. Crime—United States. I. Title. HV6789.L38 2015 364.150973'090945—dc23 2015010962 produced by wilsted & taylor publishing services To Sandra, for her infinite love and patience \ In memory of Gene Plotnik and Marc Raeff, who never saw it completed Contents ix Preface ChaPTeR 1 World War II and Its Aftermath 1 Crime in the 1940s ChaPTeR 2 The Golden Years 43 Violent Crime in the 1950s ChaPTeR 3 Ordeal 103 The Great Post-1960s Crime Rise ChaPTeR 4 The Violence Continues 171 America in the 1980s ChaPTeR 5 The Great Downturn 221 1995 to the Twenty-First Century ConCluSIon History and the Study of Crime 265 275 Acknowledgments 277 Notes 351 Bibliography 393 Index Preface Violent crime, especially after the late 1960s, was one of the most significant domestic issues in the United States. Aside from the civil rights movement, the campaign for women’s rights, and structural changes in the economy, it is hard to think of a phenomenon that had a more profound effect on American life in the last third of the twentieth century. After 1965, crime rose to such heights that it frightened virtually all Americans and prompted significant alterations in everyday be- haviors and even in lifestyles. The risk of being mugged became an issue for Americans when they chose homes and schools, se- lected commuter routes, and planned leisure activities. In some urban locations, people were afraid to leave their dwellings at any time, day or night, even to go to the grocery store. During the worst of the post-1960s crime wave, Americans spent part of each day literally looking back over their shoulders. Crime stimulated billions of dollars in government expen- ditures and millions more in civilian attempts to harden targets ix

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