The crime rate in Moose Jaw declined from 2016 to 2020, which Police Chief Rick Bourassa attributes to police work and societal changes over which officers have no control.
During the September Board of Police Commissioners meeting, Bourassa presented information from Statistics Canada about crime data for 2020 after the federal Crown organization released the data earlier this year.
“2020 was a unique year because COVID-19 struck in March,” Bourassa said, noting across Canada, the crime rate dropped significantly since society was locked down. “Locally, we saw the same trend as across the country … . (However), it’s very difficult to attribute the (exact) cause to this decline.”
The crime rate in Canada’s Most Notorious City sat at 12,705 incidents in 2016, but at the end of last year had dropped to 9,600 episodes, a decline of 24.4 per cent, the Stats Canada report showed.
Last year Moose Jaw sat roughly in the middle of a six-city pack, with Regina and Saskatoon having a lower crime rate and Weyburn, Estevan and Prince Albert having a higher rate. However, Bourassa pointed out that crime rates don’t reflect the severity of those incidents, whether they were mild or violent.
The Stats Canada data showed that Moose Jaw had a crime severity index (CSI) number of 104, declining from 116 in 2016. The highest CSI number the municipality had during those five years was in 2018 with 122.
Moose Jaw had the lowest CSI value compared to the five other Saskatchewan cities compared in the report. Prince Albert had the highest value at 249.
“We were the lowest in the province in 2020. That is good news for us,” the police chief said.
The violent CSI ranking reflects the violent actions people commit against others, Bourassa continued. This number has been declining in Moose Jaw during the past few years and reflects changes in crime that police encounter. While the pandemic contributed to the decline , the violent CSI value had been dropping before that.
In 2020 Moose Jaw’s violent CSI value was 70, compared to 101 two years before and 88 in 2016.
The Moose Jaw Police service uses this data to identify areas of strategic and operational focus, such as mental health, illicit drugs, child abuse and exploitation, and illegal firearms, he said. As a result, the police agency has increased its ability to address these issues with enhanced deployment of targeted resources.
The organization will continue to evaluate the data from Stats Canada to reveal other areas of further strategic and operational focus, added Bourassa.
The next Board of Police Commissioners meeting is Tuesday, Oct. 19.
