An academic paper written by PhD candidates at the University of Illinois took a closer look at the expansion of video gambling machines in the state and their relation to crime.
According to the paper, “increased access to video gambling leads to a statistically significant rise in violent and property crimes in Chicago.”
More from the paper:
On average, being near at least one video gambling establishment is associated with a 7.5% and 6.7% increase in violent and property crime. These estimates control for potential confounders, including access to riverboat casinos, community area specific trends, and demographic controls. Reassuringly, these effects are strongest in the block groups closest to video gambling establishments. The effects decrease as gambling access declines, becoming zero after moving three census block groups away, and remaining at zero thereafter.