The NYT reports an increase in pay-per-arrest crime tipster hotline reports as the economy tightens.
As Prices Rise, Crime Tipsters Work Overtime – New York Times
To gas prices, foreclosure rates and the cost of rice, add this rising economic indicator: the number of tips to the police from people hoping to collect reward money.
The tip that I found most interesting was the most banal:
In some cases, the quality of the tips is lagging as people grasp for any shred of information that might result in an arrest. A woman in Macon, for example, recently called to report that a family member — who was wanted for burglary and whose name and address were already known to the police — was at home. His home.
Such a tip might seem worthless on its face, said Jean Davis, who took the call. But many police departments do not have the personnel to watch a suspect’s comings and going. In that case, the young man was arrested.
Pure outsourcing of labor.