Statistics Canada Report Shows Decline in Homicides

The Statistics Canada publication Juristat has just published an article on Homicide in Canada, 2010 that shows a marked downward trend.

Among the highlights:

• In 2010, police reported 554 homicides in Canada, 56 fewer than the year before
• The homicide rate fell to 1.62 for every 100,000 population, its lowest level since 1966
• Police in several of the nation's largest census metropolitan areas reported substantially fewer homicides in 2010. The homicide rate in Vancouver, with 25 fewer killings, fell 42% to its lowest level since data in metropolitan areas became available in 1981
• Thunder Bay recorded the highest homicide rate for the second year in a row. The next highest rates were in Saskatoon and Regina
• Police reported 170 homicides with a firearm in 2010, down from 180 the year before. This is consistent with a general decline in firearm-related homicides seen over the past three decades
• In 2010, 94 homicides were considered by police to be gang related, down from 124 in 2009 and the second annual decline. Gang-related homicides reached a record high of 138 in 2008. Despite these recent declines, the rate of gang-related homicide has generally been increasing in all provinces since collection of this information began in 1991. The only exception is in Quebec
• In recent years, the number of intimate partner homicides, including spousal homicides, has been relatively stable