Crime, Violence, and Policing in Latin America

Catalog description

Latin America is the most violent region in the world and the region that spends the highest share of their budget on public security. Despite the high spending, international drug cartels and prison gangs still subvert the rule of law and even govern residents in some areas. Public security policies at times exacerbate rather than solve problems: high levels of police violence and corruption have led citizens to fear or have little trust in law enforcement. Upon taking a closer look, we see stunning variation in the patterns of violence, types of criminal groups, and the state’s crime-fighting strategies across the region. What explains variation in violence across and even within countries in Latin America? Why does organized crime look so different from place to place? And what explains why some public security policies work better than others?