The authors explain that the results of years of criminological research have produced three main conclusions regarding crime: crime is highly concentrated in specific geographic locations, a small segment of the population experiences a disproportionate amount of crime, and a small proportion of offenders commit a disproportionate amount of crime. These conclusions have guided criminal justice policy and policing practices around the world by targeting specific areas and populations for enhanced police patrol and attention. The authors examine whether the assumption that a handful of prolific offenders are responsible for a disproportionate amount of crime by examining whether local crime rates are reduced by incarcerating prolific offenders. To test this assumption, the authors examined how many days the police-nominated prolific offenders were incarcerated and how many days these offenders were free. The authors contend that if the assumption is correct, the months with greater days of imprisonment should have lower crime rates than the months where the prolific offenders were on the streets. Statistical analyses of neighborhood-level crime rates revealed that there was little evidence that the group of prolific offenders were responsible for the majority of crimes committed in the area. The only exception was that the rate of vehicle-related offenses did decrease when the prolific vehicle-offenders were incarcerated. As such, the authors caution that police practices that target certain offenders may be flawed. Further research is called for in order to better target criminal justice resources. Tables, notes, references