Are wars on crime doomed to failure?

A study conducted at the Earl Warren Legal Institute of the University of California at Berkeley concludes that expensive wars on crime are doomed to failure in the U.S. because they are attacking the wrong problem. Lawmakers need to craft a sophisticated response that specifically addresses death-dealing mayhem, maintain Franklin E. Zimring, professor of law and director of the institute, and Gordon Hawkins, a senior fellow at the institute. In comparing the U.S. to other industrialized nations, they found that American crime rates are comparable, or even lower, in most categories of nonviolent crime (burglary, theft, and other property offenses). This trend holds true when they compared cities of roughly the same size. Crimes such as burglary and theft are part of modern urban life worldwide, they point out. Only when it comes to lethal violence does the U.S. outpace other Western nations, with homicide rates many times greater.

Most killings in America do not have their origins in criminal activity, but stem from arguments. These include domestic conflicts, disputes after traffic accidents, and barroom fights. Except for assault, robbery is by far the most dangerous American crime, with a death rate per 1,000 crimes 2.5 times greater than rape and 50 times as deadly as burglary.

Why are the streets of American cities so much more lethal than those of...