"[1] Examples of street crime include pickpocketing, the open illegal drugs trade, prostitution in the form of soliciting outside the law, the creation of graffiti and vandalism of public property, and assaults.In contrast, street crimes are normally conducted by hastily and loosely formed groups of individuals with the common goal of gaining illicit money through immediate criminal acts.[citation needed] In 2016, the government allocated $31.8 billion to the Justice Department, where that money was utilized to incarcerate criminals, police them, enforce the law, and defend the interests of the United States.[6] Areas of urban decay, characterized by abandoned buildings and cars, unkempt vacant lots, and broken windows, tend to attract the homeless and increase criminal activity."[7] The sociological impact of crime causes societies to feel unsafe and demand the government protect its people from criminals, thus fueling the mass incarceration policy within the United States.
Sign on an Amsterdam street warning of pickpockets
