Do police Cameras Reduce Crime?

From: How Stuff Works
by Cristen Conger

         Do you ever get the feeling you're being watched? Walking down the street, do you sense that someone somewhere is keeping an eye on you? These days, chances are, you're right.  

A growing number of cities across the United States and abroad have installed networks of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras. Police monitor the video in an effort to prevent crime and catch lawbreakers in the act. You've probably seen the cameras; they're intentionally made conspicuous. Signs let you know your actions are being recorded.

     This law enforcement trend started in the United Kingdom in 1986 with three cameras in a 1-square-mile area in a town called King's Lynn [source: Nieto]. Today, England has more CCTV cameras than any country in the world, with half a million making up its network, nicknamed the "Ring of Steel" [source: Nieto]. Many U.S. cities, including New York, Philadelphia and Chicago, followed suit and began installing the police surveillance cameras in the early 1990s. Even the Jewish Holy Land in Jerusalem is wired with CCTV systems [source: National Institute of Justice]... More