Statistics Canada Article on Firearms and Violent Crime

A new article on Firearms and violent crime in Canada, 2023 appeared this week in Juristat, a publication from Statistics Canada.

The article looks at the most recent police-reported data on firearm-related violent crime, including incidents where a firearm was present, as well as the firearm-specific violations of discharging a firearm with intent, using a firearm in the commission of an offence and pointing a firearm.

Among the highlights:

• According to police data, there were 14,416 incidents of firearm-related violent crime in 2023, which includes violent crime where a firearm was present, and the firearm-specific violations of discharging a firearm with intent, using a firearm in the commission of an offence and pointing a firearm. Firearm-related violent crime accounted for 2.6% of all incidents of violent crime.
• There was a decrease (-1.7%) in the rate of firearm-related violent crime, which went from 37.5 incidents per 100,000 population in 2022 to 36.9 in 2023. In contrast, overall violent crime increased 4.0%.
• Despite the decline in 2023, the rate of firearm-related violent crime was 22% higher compared to 2018 and 55% higher compared to 2013, while overall violent crime was 25% higher since 2018 and 30% higher since 2013.
• Compared to 2022, the overall rate of firearm-related violent crime decreased in the provincial urban south (-6.5%) in 2023, largely driven by declines in Toronto, Calgary, Montréal and Vancouver. All other regions had increases, the largest in the provincial rural south (+19%) and the provincial urban north (+13%).
• In 2023, half (49%) of firearm-related violent crime involved the presence of a handgun, followed by a firearm-like weapon or an unknown type of firearm (31%), a rifle or shotgun (15%) and a fully automatic or sawed-off shotgun (4.7%). In the provinces, handguns were most common in urban areas while rifles or shotguns, and firearm-like weapons or unknown types of firearms, were more common in rural areas.
• The large majority (80%) of incidents of firearm-related violent crime were physical assaults, robberies, and the firearm-specific violations of discharging a firearm with intent, using a firearm in the commission of an offence and pointing a firearm.