Last year’s tally is now in, and the news story that garnered the most searches on the Internet was … (can I get a drum roll, please?) … a crime story!

Before I get to the winner, may I just say that life, as a crime and justice columnist, is sometimes a lonely one. I don’t think there’s another writer in America who — week in and week out — concentrates only on issues surrounding our justice system. I’m fascinated by the topic but, sometimes, I wonder how many of you readers are. Sure, I get mail from many of you, and I truly appreciate it, but now I have some real statistics to back up the idea that Americans are, indeed, interested in following crime and justice stories.