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Friday, March 29
The Indiana Daily Student

Study shows allocation of police resources affects economic welfare, inequality

Decisions about how to allocate police resources in a community are likely to influence not only crime but also housing prices, overall economic welfare and social inequality, according to an IU press 
release.

The new study, which IU researchers contributed to, “Stirring up a hornets’ nest: Geographic distribution of crime,” develops a model for examining the behavior of socioeconomic groups in response to two possible strategies: one in which police are concentrated in certain areas and another in which they are dispersed equally across the city, according to a press release.

The researchers conclude that equal dispersal of police will lead to a city that is economically integrated, with housing prices comparable from one neighborhood to the next. On the other hand, concentrating police in certain locations will lead to unequal neighborhoods but might produce greater overall wealth, according to a press release.

The model suggests that concentrating policing could lead to greater overall wealth as successful individuals move to well-policed neighborhoods, protecting their wealth and boosting housing values.

Leo Smith

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