The political economy of criminal justice policy: A time-series analysis of economic conditions, crime, and federal criminal justice legislation, 1948–1987

This study explores correlations between economic conditions, crime rates, and federal criminal justice legislation in the United States from 1948 to 1987. We expand on the punishment and social structure literature, inspired by Georg Rusche, by introducing new variables for operationalizing the political economy and criminal justice policy. We conduct a multivariate time-series analysis using various national economic indicators of the conditions of capital and labor over 40 years. The findings provide some support for a relationship between economic conditions and criminal justice legislation, even when crime rate is controlled.