Reducing Crime and Drug Dealing by Improving Place Management: A Randomized Experiment

Retail drug dealing creates many problems in the community where it occurs, and closing down a drug market can improve the quality of life in the surrounding neighborhood. Researchers in San Diego noted that drug dealers frequently rent in buildings with weak property management. These properties often have no onsite manager, and the owners are seldom present at the property or conduct background checks of prospective tenants. To determine if improved onsite management could be induced by police action and whether this would reduce crime, the researchers conducted a randomized study of rental properties with drug dealing in San Diego. The study was done with the San Diego Police Department (SDPD) and with funding from the National Institute of Justice.