PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Almer, Christian
AU  - Goeschl, Timo
TI  - Environmental Crime and Punishment: Empirical Evidence from the German Penal Code
AID  - 10.3368/le.86.4.707
DP  - 2010 Nov 01
TA  - Land Economics
PG  - 707--726
VI  - 86
IP  - 4
4099  - http://le.uwpress.org/content/86/4/707.short
4100  - http://le.uwpress.org/content/86/4/707.full
SO  - Land Econ2010 Nov 01; 86
AB  - U.S. and E.U. environmental policy employ criminal sanctions to enforce compliance. Recent moves toward revising their use are based on little empirical evidence as to their effectiveness. This paper exploits a unique dataset to study the deterrent effect of criminal enforcement. The dynamic panel data analysis leads to three findings. First, criminal sanctions do provide the intended deterrent effects. Second, standing trial provides one of the most significant deterrents, rather than the probability of conviction or the magnitude of fines. Third, public preferences regarding environmental quality and political economy variables affect reported environmental crime. (JEL K11, Q53)