Abstract:
As crime becomes increasingly widespread it may be optimal not to lower but to increase the standard of evidence. Even though a higher standard of evidence results in a lower expected penalty for all levels of crime, it increases the expected penalty for high levels of crime relative to the expected penalty for lower levels of crime. Consequently, a high standard of evidence is more effective in deterring high levels of crime. As the proportion of agents with a low opportunity cost of committing crime increases, the standard of evidence should be increased.