EDITORIAL: The Ferguson effect

Las Vegas has seen a significant spike in homicides over the first four months of this year. But is that increase attributable to de-policing — the idea that officers are patrolling minority neighborhoods less aggressively than in the past, for fear of being captured on video and criticized online or in the media?

That idea is also known as the Ferguson effect, referring to the backlash and rioting in Ferguson, Mo., in the wake of the August 2014 shooting death of Michael Brown by a police officer (who was later cleared of any wrongdoing). FBI Director James Comey believes de-policing is an issue in many major cities, while Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo has dismissed the notion that any such thing is at work in Las Vegas.

The FBI chief noted last week that several cities have experienced dramatic increases in the number of homicides, specifically mentioning Las Vegas. He went on say the increased murder rate may be linked to de-policing. “There’s a perception that police are less likely to do the marginal additional policing that suppresses crime, the getting out of your car at 2 in the morning and saying to a group of guys, ‘Hey, what are you doing here?’ ” Mr. Comey told reporters in Washington, D.C.

But as reported by the Review-Journal’s Wesley Juhl, Sheriff Lombardo, speaking to reporters gathered at the scene of a homicide investigation Monday night, said the Ferguson effect has little to do with Southern Nevada’s crime increase. Instead, he blamed understaffing at the Metropolitan Police Department. Metro’s officer-to-population ratio is about 1.7 to 1,000; department officials say it should be 2 per 1,000 residents.

Mr. Juhl noted in a separate report that during the first three months of 2016, Las Vegas ranked third — below Chicago and Dallas — when it comes to the increase in the actual number of killings over the same period last year. But when looking at the percentage change in homicides, Las Vegas ranks above both of those cities with an alarming 81.8 percent increase over the first three months of 2015.

Las Vegas is now at 70 homicides through mid-May, with the number beyond 80 when North Las Vegas and Henderson are included, though neither of those cities falls under Metro’s jurisdiction. The number of deaths and especially the massive increase in the percentage of homicides may indicate something more is at play than simply a lack of manpower at Metro.

Sheriff Lombardo insists he has seen little evidence of the “Ferguson effect” here in Clark County. Perhaps. The sheriff certainly knows his own department. But when the FBI director publicly raises the issue, it’s not something that can be dismissed out of hand.