The loss of James Q. Wilson is a loss to us all. He was that rare academic whose ideas could be put into action and improve the quality of life. His Broken Windows theory changed the face of modern policing. Wilson’s ideas have been borne out by studies and are now taught in universities. The greatest evidence of his success surrounds us—a resurgent city and thousands of New Yorkers who are alive today because of his radical solution to a tidal wave of crime.
via What New York Owes James Q. Wilson by Rudolph W. Giuliani, City Journal Spring 2012.