The Daily. Thursday, July 19, 2001

Crime statistics

The national crime rate, based on data reported by police, fell for a ninth consecutive year in 2000. The 1% decline in the rate of total Criminal Code offences was primarily the result of a 5% drop in property crime. However, increases were reported in total violent crime (+3%) as well as several other offences including drug offences (+9%).

The overall crime rate fell in three of the four largest provinces: British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario. Not all regions followed the national trend; the crime rate increased in Saskatchewan, Newfoundland, Quebec, Manitoba and in all three territories.

Saskatchewan's crime rate of 12,730 criminal incidents for every 100,000 population was the highest among the provinces for a third consecutive year, followed by British Columbia (11,253) and Manitoba (10,723). Newfoundland continued to have the lowest crime rate (5,711), followed by Quebec (6,027). As in previous years, all three territories reported crime rates that were much higher than those of the provinces.

Note to readers This report is based on an annual Juristat released today by the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics (CCJS). Data on incidents that come to the attention of the police are captured and forwarded to the CCJS via the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) survey according to a nationally-approved set of common scoring rules, categories and definitions. UCR data are available from 1962 at the national and provincial/territorial levels, and from 1991 onward at the Census Metropolitan Area level.

The youth crime rate, as measured by the number of youths formally charged by police, rose slightly in 2000 (+1%) after having fallen in the previous eight years. Similar to the overall crime trend, the youth charged rate for violent offences increased 7%, while that for property offences declined 4%.

Most major categories of youth violent crime rose in 2000, including sexual assault (+18%), assault (+7%) and robbery (+2%). Despite the large increase in youths charged with sexual assault in 2000, the rate for this offence was still 24% short of its peak in 1993. In 2000, 41 youths were charged with homicide, four fewer than in 1999. Though this figure fluctuates from year to year, this was well below the annual average of 51 homicides over the past 10 years. Youths charged with break-ins declined 6% - the ninth straight annual drop - but the rate of youths charged with motor vehicle theft increased 3%.

Slight increase in violent crime after seven years of decline

The slight increase in the national violent crime rate in 2000 followed seven consecutive years of decline. Prior to these declines, which started in 1993, the violent crime rate had increased each year since 1977. The violent crime rate in 2000 was about the same as it was a decade before and 54% higher than 20 years before.

Five provinces reported rises of 4% or more in their violent crime rate: Quebec (+8%), Prince Edward Island (+5%), Saskatchewan (+4%), Manitoba (+4%) and Ontario (+4%). Three provinces reported decreases of around 1% to 2%; British Columbia posted the largest drop.

Even with an 8% increase in 2000, Quebec and Prince Edward Island still had the lowest violent crime rates (718 and 719 incidents, respectively, per 100,000). Saskatchewan (1,663) and Manitoba (1,638) reported the highest rates. All three territories reported violent crime rates at least double those of any province.

Homicide rate stable

The homicide rate, generally declining since the mid-1970s, remained unchanged at 1.8 homicides per 100,000. There were 542 homicides in 2000, 4 more than in 1999. However, the rate of attempted murders jumped 11%, or by 79 incidents.

Manitoba (2.6 per 100,000) and Saskatchewan (2.5) reported the highest provincial homicide rates. Both Nunavut (10.8) and the Yukon (6.5) had higher rates than any of the provinces. Newfoundland had the lowest homicide rate (1.1), followed by New Brunswick (1.3) and Ontario (1.3).

The rate of assaults increased 5%, including a 4% rise in common assault, the least serious of the three levels of assault. This one crime accounted for almost two-thirds of all violent crimes. Assaults with a weapon were up 7%, while aggravated assaults, the most serious of the three assault categories, rose 1%.

The reported sexual assault rate remained stable in 2000, following six years of decline. Of the 24,049 reported incidents of sexual assault, 98% were classified by police as level 1 (the least serious level of sexual assault). The two most serious categories, sexual assault with a weapon (-17%) and aggravated sexual assault (-15%), continued to decline.

The rate of robbery dropped 7%, continuing a downward trend since 1991. Robberies with a firearm dropped 16%.

Reported incidents of criminal harassment, commonly known as stalking, continued to increase in 2000. A group of police services, representing 41% of the national volume of crime reported, posted an estimated 16% rise in criminal harassment incidents from 1999 to 2000, and about a 50% increase since 1996. It is difficult to determine if this represents a real increase in stalking behaviour or reflects greater awareness and reporting of this relatively new offence.

Property crime rate continues to drop

The property crime rate has been generally decreasing since 1991. In 2000, approximately 1.3 million property crime incidents were reported by police, resulting in the lowest property crime rate since 1973. All property crime categories contributed to the national 5% decline, particularly the 9% drop in the rate of break-ins. Residential break-ins fell 12%, and business break-ins fell 3%.

Property crime rates dropped in all provinces except Saskatchewan (+2%) in 2000. The largest declines occurred in Nova Scotia (-11%), Alberta (-7%), British Columbia (-6%) and Ontario (-5%). Despite decreases in property crimes over the last four years, British Columbia continues to have the highest property crime rate (6,359 incidents per 100,000) among the provinces, followed by Saskatchewan (5,870). The lowest rates were reported in Newfoundland (2,411) and New Brunswick (2,876).

The motor vehicle theft rate dropped 2%, a fourth annual decline, following steady growth over the previous decade. Despite these recent declines, the rate was 27% higher than 10 years previous. However, not all provinces saw declines in motor vehicle thefts in 2000. Increases of more than 8% were seen in Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Manitoba once again posted the highest rate among the provinces (1,028 motor vehicle thefts per 100,000 population), and Newfoundland the lowest (119).

Increase in most drug categories

A 9% increase in cannabis offences contributed to the 9% increase in the overall rate of drug offences, continuing the upward trend that began in 1994. Cannabis offences accounted for three-quarters of all drug-related incidents. More than two-thirds of these were for possession. Increases were also seen in the rate of cocaine offences (+6%) and other drug offences (+12%). Heroin offences dropped 8%.

Police charged 69,192 persons with impaired driving in 2000, a 5% drop from 1999. The impaired driving rate had stabilized during 1998 and 1999 after 15 years of steady decline. Some of this decline could be attributed to a growing tendency by police to issue a road-side suspension, rather than charge some drivers tested to be slightly over the legal alcohol limit.

Metropolitan-area crime rates highest in west, lowest in Quebec

Among the 25 census metropolitan areas, the highest overall crime rates in 2000 were reported in Regina, Saskatoon, Vancouver, Victoria and Winnipeg. The lowest were in Chicoutimi-Jonquière, Québec, Trois-Rivières and Toronto.

The largest increases in overall crime in 2000 occurred in Saskatoon (+11%) and St. John's (+10%). The largest declines were reported in Saint John (-12%), Ottawa (-11%) and Victoria (-11%).

Despite a 7% decline, Regina reported the highest violent crime rate for a second consecutive year, followed by Saskatoon and Thunder Bay. Double-digit increases in violent crime were reported in Hull, Halifax, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Québec and Sherbrooke. Victoria reported the largest decline in violent crime (-12%).

Regina (3.5 homicides per 100,000) and Saskatoon (3.0) also reported the highest homicide rates, followed by Trois-Rivières (2.8) and Chicoutimi-Jonquière (2.8). The lowest homicide rates were found in Hull (0.4), London (0.5), Sudbury (0.6) and Saint John (0.7).

Available on CANSIM: tables 2520001, 2520002 and 2550002 and matrices 2198-2200.

Juristat: Canadian crime statistics, 2000, Vol. 21, no. 8 (85-002-XIE, $8/$70; 85-002-XPE, $10/$93) is now available.

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Information and Client Services (1-800-387-2231; 613-951-9023), Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.

Selected criminal incidents reported by police

Crime rates by province and territory

Crime rates by census metropolitan area