It is always nice to see a letter to the editor from my good friend and fellow IES Roadway Lighting Committee (RLC) Member Robert Clear. It appears that letters to the editor is a dying art and only a few of us still use this action to voice our opinions.
I am reacting to Bob’s “Light Well, Not More” letter that appeared in LD+A, June 2025. There, Bob basically states that crime increases where there is lighting because the bad guys can better see what they’re doing. This is opposite of what Dr. Kate Painter at The Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge, stated—that crime moves to where there is no light.
I, personally, will side more with Dr. Painter’s theory and findings. I’ll use a youthful indiscretion of mine as an example: “taking out” lighting right before Halloween so we could do our “tricks” without being seen. Also, with the thousands of cameras and the evolution of facial-recognition software that is used by law enforcement, the criminal is less likely to be in an area that has lighting.
There are valid points on both sides of this story regarding lighting. I truly believe that it goes well beyond lighting and focuses on what is happening socially, which is an article all by itself.
Thanks Bob, as usual, for a well-written letter.
Ed Morel
Member IES
