Most Americans support shutting major transport routes to find dangerous criminals, but oppose stopping transit to catch petty criminals.
The past month has seen two incidents where the police have limited travel within a city to help apprehend a suspect. In April, Boston was put on almost total lockdown as authorities scoured the city for the Tsarnaev brothers accused of bombing the Boston Marathon. Earlier this week, police in New York City shut four of the busiest subway lines in the city to slow down the escape of a man accused of muggings.
A new YouGov poll reveals that 77% think it is okay to shut routes to help catch suspected terrorists and 53% support shutting routes to catch violent criminals such as murderers or rapists. Only 9% think that it is acceptable for the authorities to shut major routes to catch minor criminals suspected of theft or assault.
Responses were largely the same regardless of political affiliation, age or other factors.
Complete results are available here.
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