Pick a Crime

In Short

This story depicts a future where the Crime Prevention Association (CPA) has effectively eradicated illegal behavior through surveillance, psychological conditioning, and preemptive intervention. Joe Harper, a man labeled a "Dangerous Criminal Tendency," believes that committing a crime is his only path to social redemption and a decent job. Through a cynical lens, the book explores the paradox of a society that claims to value freedom while using radical surgery to enforce behavioral compliance. It remains a stark, uncomfortable meditation on the loss of individual agency in the pursuit of absolute safety.

The Story

Joe Harper lives in a near-future New York where crime is virtually nonexistent. The CPA monitors every citizen; robots, microphones, and hidden cameras are everywhere. Joe is a "DCT"—a person identified as having Dangerous Criminal Tendencies—which makes him a social pariah, barred from stable employment. He believes his only hope for a respectable life is to commit a crime, get caught, and undergo the state’s mandatory "treatment." Once "cured" of his tendencies, he would become an "Ex," a person who, by law, is guaranteed the best jobs because they are biologically incapable of dishonesty.

Joe hires a woman to help him stage a rape, believing that only a completed act of violence against a victim will force the state to intervene. However, the woman is a sergeant in the Women’s Self-Defense Association, and she easily thrashes him. When he is hauled before Commissioner Hendricks, he confesses to conspiracy. Hendricks reveals that the state already knew his plans; they monitor the alleys just as they monitor everything else. Because conspiracy isn't a crime, Joe is merely promoted to "DCT First Class," turning him into a target for "amateur cops"—bored citizens who stalk him to capture a moment of excitement.

Exhausted by the harassment, Joe begs Hendricks to frame him for a real crime. Hendricks, claiming it would violate civil rights to set him up, nevertheless leaves a "blind spot" in the records exposed. He essentially points Joe toward an apartment to rob. Joe takes the bait, breaking into an empty room and stealing a broken watch. He is arrested, tried, and sent to the hospital for the state’s intensive psychological treatment.

Months later, Joe emerges. He finds himself calmer, but realizes his capacity for hatred has merely been dampened, not erased. He is greeted by a cheering crowd of people who, as Hendricks explains, admire him not for the crime, but for his transition into a productive "Ex." Joe finally understands the true nature of his "cure." When he attempts to strike or curse Hendricks in the car, his own nervous system turns against him; a sharp, localized pain strikes his brain, and an internal voice dictates his behavior. He is a prisoner within his own body. When he tries to express his hatred for the system, he is silenced by the same mechanism. Finally, when he tries to spit on the sidewalk in a last act of defiance, he is stopped by the agonizing, invisible hand of the state. He is left trapped in a world where he is "free" only to do what is legal.

How It Unfolds

The hunt for a crime Joe seeks a way to get arrested so he can access the state-mandated rehabilitation that will clear his record. He attempts to stage a crime but is thwarted by the state’s ubiquitous surveillance and the unintended strength of his potential victim.

The promotion to pariah Commissioner Hendricks informs Joe that his attempt was a failure, and as punishment, he elevates Joe’s status to a high-priority DCT. Joe becomes a spectacle for the public, followed by cameras and children who treat him like a dangerous animal.

The guided opportunity Hendricks offers Joe a "blind spot" in the system, effectively nudging him toward an apartment to rob. Joe seizes this opportunity, committing the theft and shouting for the police to ensure his arrest.

The internal cage Following his treatment, Joe realizes that his rehabilitation isn't a moral shift but a biological restriction. His nervous system is now wired to punish him with pain if he thinks or acts in a way that violates the law.

The final surrender Joe attempts to rebel against the state’s control, but his own body betrays him at every turn. He is left physically and mentally shackled by a system that has turned his very impulses into his jailers.

The People

Joe Harper is the central figure, a man defined by his stubborn, aimless rebellion against a society that has no place for his non-conformity. He is "spectacularly dumb," according to the state, yet his desire for a normal life drives him to pursue the very treatment that ultimately destroys his autonomy.

Commissioner Hendricks is the story’s dark architect. He is a grotesque, "greasy bulk of a man" whose physical appearance prevents him from high office, yet he possesses a sharp, cynical intelligence. He views Joe as a nuisance to be managed rather than a human to be helped. He is the voice of the CPA’s cold logic, orchestrating the system so that even the most resistant individuals like Joe are eventually processed and rendered docile.

The woman Joe hires represents the pervasive reach of the state. As a sergeant in the Women’s Self-Defense Association, she is emblematic of a citizenry that has fully internalized the CPA’s mandate. She is capable, confident, and dismissive of Joe’s "Middle Ages" criminality, serving as a reminder that in this future, the enforcement of order is a collaborative effort by every citizen.

In Its Own Voice

The CPA’s complete control over the environment is established early on, leaving no room for the chaos of crime.

"If a man was smart enough to kill someone, for instance, he wasn't sent to prison to be punished; he wasn't punished at all."

This describes the state's paternalistic, clinical response to serious violence, which prefers medical intervention over retribution.

"A world of happy, healthy people. Except for freaks like yourself, criminals are--"

Hendricks uses this line to justify the marginalization of those who cannot conform to the state's rigid standards of mental hygiene.

What It's Really About

The book explores the dehumanizing trade-off between absolute safety and personal liberty. It asks whether a society that removes the capacity for evil has actually achieved goodness, or if it has merely created a collection of biological automata. The central argument is that when a government controls the mechanisms of the mind, "democracy" becomes a hollow word, masking a form of total control that is more efficient—and more terrifying—than any prison. By treating dissent and criminality as diseases to be "cured" rather than choices to be addressed, the society in this book eliminates the possibility of moral growth, replacing the complexities of human conscience with a programmed, pain-based obedience.

Why Read It Today

This story will resonate with readers who are fascinated by the intersection of behavioral psychology and political control. Reading it feels like walking through a sterile, high-tech museum of one’s own worst fears; the prose is direct, functional, and intentionally devoid of sentiment, mirroring the cold world it describes.

The book is undeniably a product of its time, featuring period-specific attitudes toward gender and law enforcement that may feel archaic or abrasive to a modern audience. However, these dated elements do not dull the sharpness of the core premise. The most unsettling aspect that stays with you is the final realization of the "internal cage." The transition from Joe’s external struggle to be "caught" to his internal struggle to simply act with free will is a masterstroke of tension. While the length is short and the world-building is brisk, the philosophical questions it raises regarding the nature of "good" behavior are timeless. If you enjoy stories that challenge the definition of a "perfect" society by showing the rot hidden within its clean walls, this work offers a concise and brutal example of the genre.