Bill Bratton, who helped Rudy Giuliani take credit for New York City’s crime reduction in the 1990s, is returning to the Police Commissioner’s job under incoming mayor Bill de Blasio. The first thing he should tackle is environmental lead.

According to Cecil Adams (“the only man smarter than the Bitemaster”) and Kevin Drum (a writer for some blog), the rise and fall of crime in the US in the 20th century closely tracks the rise and fall of environmental lead.

Yup, Bratton and Giuliani owe their careers to the lead paint and leaded gasoline bans enacted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and Environmental Protection Agency.

The Straight Dope: Does no more lead in gasoline = less violent crime?.