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Staying home saves lives, really!

Author

Listed:
  • Maurizio Malpede

    (Bocconi University and University of Verona)

  • Soheil Shayegh

    (Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici)

Abstract

When coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was spreading worldwide, many national and local governments started to impose socially restrictive measures to limit the spread of the virus. Such quarantine measures in different cities worldwide have brought a new trend in public safety improvement and crime reduction. Using daily crime reports in the U.S., this paper evaluates the immediate unintended effects of shelter-in-place orders on different crime categories using fine-grained spatial units (i.e., neighborhoods) rather than entire cities, states, or countries. Results for San Francisco suggest an immediate drop of between 10 and 20% points in the total number of crimes after one month from the introduction of the restrictions. In particular, we show that while theft, homicide, and traffic accidents have fallen sharply, domestic violence incidents and weapon possession offences were not affected by the lockdown. The results are robust to the inclusion of spatial and temporal dependence.

Suggested Citation

  • Maurizio Malpede & Soheil Shayegh, 2022. "Staying home saves lives, really!," Letters in Spatial and Resource Sciences, Springer, vol. 15(3), pages 637-651, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:lsprsc:v:15:y:2022:i:3:d:10.1007_s12076-022-00316-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s12076-022-00316-6
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Hoehn-Velasco, Lauren & Silverio-Murillo, Adan & de la Miyar, Jose Roberto Balmori, 2021. "The great crime recovery: Crimes against women during, and after, the COVID-19 lockdown in Mexico," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 41(C).
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    6. Abrams, David S., 2021. "COVID and crime: An early empirical look," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 194(C).
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Coronavirus; COVID-19; Crime; Quarantine;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • K14 - Law and Economics - - Basic Areas of Law - - - Criminal Law

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