Homicide rates are down

Sherry Noik QMI Agency Canadas murder rate fell last year to its lowest level since 1966, Statistics Canada reported Wednesday. Police recorded 554 homicides in 2010 - 56 fewer than the year before. ats 1.62 for every 100,000 people. Its simply a matter of shifting demographics, said Neil Boyd, a professor at the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University. We have fewer young men (18-29) in the population about half as many as in the late 70s and early 80s, he told QMI Agency. When you get a decline in the percentage of young men in any population, you can expect to get a decline down from 79 in rates of crime and rates of the previous year. violent crime. He also noted our culture has changed. Were a lot less tolerant of violence today than we were 30 years ago, he said. Still, stabbings and shootings were the most common methods of murder, accounting for 31% and 32%, respectively. Another 22% of homicides involved beatings, and 8% were by strangulation or su ocation. e remaining homicides were by means such as vehicles, re and poisoning. e lower national rate was Homicides rates, driven largely by a less per 100,000 homicidal West: 18 fewer population murders in Alberta, 12 fewer in Manitoba and 35 fewer in B.C. While those numbers may seem signi cant - especially for people living in those communities Boyd says 1961 statistically the numbers are 1966 small and the changes can be 1.28 1.25 attributed to random uctuation.

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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.
1975 1977 3.03 3.00 One-half of all homicides in Toronto in 2010 were committed with a rearm.

56 youths (12 to 17 years of age) were accused of homicide in 2010 Gangrelated homicides, 2010
22 18 10 11 5
Ont. Que. Atlantic

1985 2.72

1991 2.15

In 2010, handguns accounted for the majority of homicides committed with a rearm (64%), followed by ries or shotguns (23%), and other rearms such as sawed-o shotguns, automatic rearms or other rearm-like weapons (13%)

Male victim rate, Female 2010 victim rate, 2.36 2010 0.88
1988 2.15 2005 2.06
80

23

Man.

Sask.

Alta.

B.C.

83% of victims knew their killer

Total: 94 17% of all homicides were gang-related

2008 1.83 2003 1.74

2009 1.81 2010 1.62

49

Dangerous occupations
130 homicides from 2000 to 2010 were directly related to the victims job. Transportation-related occupations (taxi drivers, truck drivers, and bus drivers. Security occupations (police, correctional o cers, security personnel) Retail employees Restaurant, bar/hotel worker

1.2 1.0 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.0 80

Homicides rates, by method

27

36 Shootings Stabbings Beatings 83 86 89 92 95 32 Rate per 100,00 population 98 01 04 07 10 13 15 22

26 22 19

Sources: Statistics Canada

Saguenay Windsor TroisRivires Guelph Brantford Sherbrooke Gatineau Saint John PeterboroughN St. John's Barrie Moncton Kingston Kelowna Greater Sudbury Abbotsford St. Catharines** Kitchener* Thunder Bay Victoria Oshawa Qubec Regina London Saskatoon Halifax Hamilton Ottawa Calgary Winnipeg Edmonton Vancouver Montral Toronto

prostitutes have been killed since 2000, as a direct result of their occupation

78

Number of homicides in 2010 by CMA

0 0 0 0 1 1 5 5 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 4

6 6

11 12 9 10 8

SUSAN BATSFORD, GRAPHICS EDITOR, TWITTER @SBATS1/QMI AGENCY