OneBut there is a critical ambiguity in Zeisel's limits-of-law-enforcement
thesis. Since he does not define what he means by "significant"
crime reduction, it is unclear whether he is only ruling out drastic reductions
(for example, twenty-five percent or more), or whether he believes
that most American jurisdictions cannot even make noticeable, nontrivial,
or statistically significant reductions in their present crime rates.
Perhaps he believes that law enforcement has so little impact that we
could even reduce enforcement levels without noticeably increasing the
incidence of crime. But whatever Zeisel's intent, the ambiguity of his
thesis-coupled with the forceful manner of its presentation-may well
lead his intended nonacademic readers to construe the thesis broadly.