884 - Logical Reasoning

Question: The rate of violent crime in this state is up 30 percent from last year. The fault lies entirely in our court system: Recently our judges' sentences have been so lenient that criminals can now do almost anything without fear of a long prison term.
The argument above would be weakened if it were true that

1. 85 percent of the other states in the nation have lower crime rates than does this state.
2. white collar crime in this state has also increased by over 25 percent in the last year.
3. 35 percent of the police in this state have been laid off in the last year due to budget cuts.
4. polls show that 65 percent of the population in this state oppose capital punishment.
5. the state has hired 25 new judges in the last year to compensate for deaths and retirements.