The New York success is supported by research that finds that greater police visibility decreases crime. It does so by convincing would-be criminals that they are more likely to get caught, known as deterrence.63 The same research into deterrence also finds that longer sentences do not deter crime and may in fact increase it. Probation is also shown to prevent crime and decrease recidivism, while imprisonment is not.64 This suggests that an effective way to reduce crime and mass incarceration would be shorter, swifter, and more certain prison sentences, with the money saved redirected to more
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