Casinos and Crime: A Sour Bet
Feature by Ed Vitagliano
August 10, 2006

(AgapePress) - When it comes to gambling, people can argue all day long about morality, stewardship and whether or not it's possible for a person to beat the odds and win consistently. Adding to the debate is the subject of crime. A landmark study found that crime increases in counties where casinos locate.

Economists David B. Mustard of the University of Georgia and Earl L. Grinols of Baylor University examined crime data from each county in the U.S. between 1977 to 1996, comparing statistics from those counties which had casinos and those that did not. FBI figures for seven crime categories were surveyed: aggravated assault, rape, robbery, murder, larceny, burglary and auto theft. the rest