Researchers in New York City did a study on ice cream sales and murder rates in the city. This graph was included in the results. After seeing this graph as a picture with the headline “Ice cream sales cause murder rates to increase” shared on social media by her best friend’s second cousin, the president of a prominent HOA in the Hamptons decided to petition to ban the sale of ice cream so that people would stop being murdered.

Was the HOA president right for doing so? What other factors could have contributed to both the rise in ice cream sales and murders? Is this an example of correlation or causation?