by Malcolm C. Young and Marc Mauer

About the authors: Malcolm C. Young is the executive director and Marc Mauer is the assistant director of the Sentencing Project in Washington, D.C.

“Law and order” politicians and ideologues have long contended that the way to defeat violent crime is to lock up more people in prison for longer terms. The latest salvo in the conservative attack is a January 1996 report from the newly- formed Council on Crime in America, co-chaired by Griffin Bell and William Bennett. The Council describes itself as an organization that “seeks to provide rigorous, factual information” and portrays its report, The State of Violent Crime in America, by Council member John DiIulio, as a comprehensive analysis of the problem.

Correcting Myths About Crime and Imprisonment

In fact, the...