A descriptive model of the relationship between police CCTV systems and crime. Evidence from Mexico City

We test the relationship of police closed circuit television (CCTV) systems with crime at the census block level. Our descriptive model is based on environmental criminology theory and spatial modeling. We use as case study the Colonia Roma neighborhood in Mexico City which is a neighborhood characterized by high density, mixed uses, and high levels of crime. We found that CCTV correlated only with non-violent crime and, further, that crime was more strongly correlated to other crime opportunity and social disorganization correlates. In the remaining blocks we found no statistical evidence of an association between CCTV and crime. We discuss these results in terms of research methods and policy.