The minimum legal drinking age and crime

• Autores: Christopher Carpenter, Carlos Dobkin
• Localización: The Review of economics and statistics, ISSN 0034-6535, Vol. 97, Nº 2, 2015, págs. 521-524
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • We use variation from the minimum legal drinking age to estimate the causal effect of access to alcohol on crime. Using a census of arrests in California and a regression discontinuity design, we find that individuals just over age 21 are 5.9% more likely to be arrested than individuals just under 21. This increase is mostly due to assaults, alcohol-related offenses, and nuisance crimes. These results suggest that policies that restrict access to alcohol have the potential to substantially reduce crime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]