When the power goes out, does crime go up? Heres what we know [Video]

CLEVELAND, Ohio – When the power goes out, are you more likely to be a victim of crime?

It’s a question on the minds of many in Northeast Ohio, as they grapple with a lack of electricity and internet connection after this week’s storms.

Those storms included two tornadoes and a wind gust that reached 86 mph and left hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses without power. Some have already seen their power restored, but as of 3:30 p.m. Thursday, more than a quarter-million FirstEnergy Corp. customers are still in the dark.

Conventional wisdom indicates criminals will take advantage of non-functioning security systems, surveillance cameras and streetlights to commit crimes.

A 2023 review, published in the peer-reviewed journal Academic Research Letters, examined 50 academic articles on the social impacts of power outages and found that while old studies found crime increased during power outages, more recent studies do not support that conclusion.

In fact, more recent studies …