The Following Table Presents the Number of Police Officers (Per

The following table presents the number of police officers (per 100,000 citizens) and the annual murder rate (per 100,000 citizens) for a sample of cities. $$\begin{array} { c c } \hline \text { Police Officers (per 100,000) } & \text { Murders (per 100,000 per yr) } \\\hline 1252 & 37 \\1352 & 34 \\1271 & 41 \\1275 & 39 \\1472 & 35 \\1047 & 52 \\\hline\end{array}$$ The correlation coefficient between the per capita number of police officers and the per capita murder rates -0.899. Which of the following is the best interpretation of the correlation coefficient?

A) The per capita murder rate tends to go down as the per capita number of police officers goes up.
B) Higher murder rates make it more difficult for cities to hire police officers.
C) The per capita number of police officers and the per capita murder rates are positively associated.
D) More per capita police officers results in fewer per capita murders.