Reducing the hours bars and taverns could sell alcohol in a Baltimore neighborhood reduced all violent crime in the area annually by 23 percent, a study has found.Research by the Boston University School of Public Health and the Alcohol Research Group of Emeryville, California, found that the number of murders dropped by 51 percent within the first month of the trial.
They compared these to crimes happening near 41 other bars with unchanged hours of operation in demographically similar Baltimore neighborhoods.The researchers looked at both violent crime—defined as homicide, robbery, aggravated assault and rape—and common assault. They took other factors into account, including population size and the number of convenience stores in the area.Overall, the reduction in crime saved Baltimore an estimated $18.2 million in annual costs.