Abstract

AbstractThis paper examines the potential incapacitation effect on various categories of crime committed by young persons. I exploit the increase in compulsory education‐work participation age from 15 to 17 in Australia's largest state. The policy primarily increased participation in schools with high enrolments in school‐based vocational education programs. By using incidents of crime, I incorporate incapacitation effects on crimes that do not lead to arrests and provide net effect of the policy. Results show substantial reduction in incidents of crime, particularly by male offenders in urban areas and suggest that the policy did not displace crime from streets to schools. Crimes against property, which are often diverted from the criminal justice system, show the largest decline.

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