We use panel data from 1983 to 2001 for recorded crime and from 1983 to 2004 for convictions for the
42 police force areas in England and Wales to test the hypothesis that legalizing abortion contributes
to lower crime rates. Using the recorded crime data and a similar model and estimation methodology as
Donohue and Levitt (2001), we are able to replicate for the U.K. the negative association between abortion
rates and reported crime they found for the U.S. However, when we consider various robustness checks, and
using data on convictions broken down by age, we find no clear, consistent relationship between abortion rates and crime.
Presented by:
David Paton (University of Nottingham)
Date & time:
February 12, 2007 4:00 pm - February 12, 2007 12:00 am
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