Mayor & RCMP comment on Crime Severity Index
Statistics Canada has released its annual report on the number of police-reported criminal incidents and types of crimes across Canada. This report contains three indexes – a Crime Severity Index, a Violent Crime Severity Index, and a Non-violent Crime Severity Index.
The collective CSI for 2019 has put the Kelowna Metropolitan Census Area, which includes Peachland, West Kelowna, Westbank First Nation, Kelowna and Lake Country, in the Top 10 in Canada – No. 4 in crime overall, No. 14 in violent crime, and No. 2 in non-violent crime.
Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran issued the following comments in response to the latest figures:
There’s no question I am concerned about these statistics and the impact on residents throughout the Central Okanagan. I will caution that many factors influence statistics about reported crime, and they are an imperfect measure of community safety. As noted in the report the change in reporting standards resulted in spikes in specific categories.
While most citizens feel safe in the community, we are dealing with increased property crime and that affects people’s sense of safety. The 2020 Citizen Survey shows that 87 per cent of citizens say they feel safe. The reasons most often cited by citizens for feeling unsafe are related to the underlying socio-economic conditions that produce homelessness (33%) and public substance use (16%).
The City of Kelowna invests one quarter of all tax dollars in police and bylaw services – Council approved funding in the most recent budget for 11 new RCMP officers as well as 14 safety-related civilian support positions, for a total of $2.9 million annually. Community safety represents the largest operating budget investment for 2020 at $39.8 million and its importance and a priority is reflected in the development of the new Community Safety Plan.
Since 2015, a total of 95 new safety full-time equivalent positions have been approved by Council: 34 RCMP officers, 20 firefighters, 10 bylaw officers, and 31 safety support staff (23 Police, 4 Bylaw, 3 Security/Business and 1 Fire).
We work with RCMP every day to address criminal behaviour, but we need senior levels of government to address the underlying problems of health, housing and poverty that contribute to these downstream issues.
As co-chair of the B.C. Urban Mayors Caucus representing the province’s 13 largest cities, I have recently been in discussions with the Premier and government ministers about the need to improve services that address mental health and addiction, affordable housing, municipal financing and public transit.
Community safety cannot rest on the shoulders of police, alone. A multi-pronged preventative approach is needed to reduce crime and improve community sense of safety in our city.
RCMP need support from other agencies to deal with repeat offenders. The criminal justice and health systems need to address the underlying conditions that lead to crime, including addictions, homelessness and poverty.
I am encouraged though by the many other initiatives that the RCMP and the City are doing to help address community safety. In particular, recent news that a Community Court has been approved for Kelowna is a huge win for our community.
I want to stress that we are all working hard every day to implement strategies and actions that address concerns – our bylaws group, in partnership with RCMP, Interior Health, the Downtown Kelowna Association, private security and other organizations are working to protect everyone and balance the needs of our residents and the broader community. This means making sure the public feels safe to enjoy our downtown and other public spaces, that criminals are dealt with through enforcement and that those who need help receive compassionate assistance.
New Kelowna RCMP Superintendent Kara Triance issued the following statement on the 2019 Crime Severity Index of Police Reported Crime:
In the report the Kelowna Census Metropolitan Area (CMA), which consists of the city of Kelowna, rural Kelowna, West Kelowna, Peachland, and Lake Country, is ranked fourth out of 35 CMA`s across Canada for overall Crime Severity (CSI) in 2019 compared to 6th in 2018.
We recognize that this ranking appears concerning, but I would like to stress that Kelowna and the surrounding communities remain extremely safe. What’s important is to look at our CSI statistics in context. There are a number of factors that impact this ranking including the size of our community, a change in how crimes are reported, as well as some relatively new programs to address the key driver behind the numbers – property crime.
A CSI is determined by police reported crime and population in an area. The Kelowna CMA has a relatively small population and very proactive RCMP detachments that self-generate police files. Kelowna is also a resort destination during the summer with a significant increase in visitor population. While that number is not reflected in our population statistics, it does affect reported crime.
The Statistics Canada report indicates that the Kelowna CMA is ranked 14th in violent crime. It is the non-violent crime that appears to have adversely affected our ranking.
Our preliminary review shows that much of the crime that is affecting the Kelowna CMA crime rating are these non-violent crimes of opportunity and resulting in more files that police generate. These include: Theft from motor vehicles, shoplifting, theft under $5000 (which is often theft from yards or open garages), mischief, and disturbing the peace files.
Due to the Kelowna CMA`s relatively small population size one or two prolific offenders who commit these crimes can have a dramatic effect on the region’s crime statistics.
In addition, it is important to note that as of January 2019, new standards for police-reported crime statistics collected by Statistics Canada were implemented. In addition, police services in British Columbia undertook a uniform training strategy to further standardize reporting throughout the province. The new reporting standards were expected to result in an increase in crime rates over time.
It is important to stress that we have been monitoring these statistics on a continuous basis. That’s why we have introduced a number of significant changes and improvements in how police service is deliver in the area over the past year. This includes:
focusing on our community partnerships such as working with the Kelowna Outreach and Support Team, Social Services agencies, and the Interior Health to address the complex problems around housing, mental health, and poverty.
The addition of six positions to our community safety unit putting more uniformed officers on the street in downtown Kelowna and Rutland area, with increased patrols on Friday and Saturday nights.
A new online crime reporting website to make it easier for our citizens to report theft and other crimes
Implementing our General Investigative Support Team (GIST). This team is imbedded with our frontline officers and provide ongoing and immediate assistance with more serious and complex investigations.
And focussing on our employee training and wellness programs to support those who perform this work.
It is our belief that these changes better allow us to serve our communities in the region and to help disrupt criminals that may be in the area.
The RCMP remains committed to providing excellent police service to each of the communities we serve. We will be reviewing the statistics to determine how the RCMP and our communities can actively reduce and prevent these crimes of opportunity and reduce the regions Crime Severity Index rating in the future.