Table 12
Violations contributing to the change in the Crime Severity Index, by census metropolitan area, 2019 and 2020


Table 12
Violations contributing to the change in the Crime Severity Index, by census metropolitan area, 2019 and 2020
Table summary
This table displays the results of Violations contributing to the change in the Crime Severity Index. The information is grouped by Census metropolitan area (CMA) (appearing as row headers), Percent change in Crime Severity Index from 2019 to 2020 and Violations driving the change in Crime Severity Index (appearing as column headers).
Census metropolitan area (CMA)Table 12 Note 1 Table 12 Note 2 Table 12 Note 3 Percent change in Crime Severity Index from 2019 to 2020 Violations driving the change in Crime Severity Index
Canada -8 Decrease in breaking and entering, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), robbery, shoplifting of $5,000 or under, as well as administration of justice violations, and sexual assault (level 1).
St. John's -10 Decrease in breaking and entering, as well as homicide, shoplifting of $5,000 or under and administration of justice violations; partially offset by increase in mischief.
Halifax 2 Increase in fraud, homicide, breaking and entering and child pornography; partially offset by decrease in administration of justice violations.
Moncton -5 Decrease in breaking and entering, as well as theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), violent firearms offences, homicide and robbery; partially offset by increase in trafficking, production, importation or exportation of methamphetamine, identity theft and fraud.
Saint John -13 Decrease in homicide, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting) and breaking and entering.
Saguenay -8 Decrease in breaking and entering; partially offset by increase in fraud.
Québec -4 Decrease in breaking and entering and failure to stop or remain (traffic violation); partially offset by increase in fraud, identity fraud and identity theft.
Sherbrooke 1 Increase in fraud, sexual assault (level 1) and sexual violations against children; partially offset by decrease in breaking and entering.
Trois-Rivières -8 Decrease in breaking and entering; partially offset by increase in homicide.
Montréal -9 Decrease in breaking and entering, importation or exportation under the Cannabis ActTable 12 Note 4 and robbery.
GatineauTable 12 Note 5 -8 Decrease in breaking and entering and failure to stop or remain (traffic violation); partially offset by increase in homicide.
OttawaTable 12 Note 6 -16 Decrease in shoplifting of $5,000 or under, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), and robbery; partially offset by increase in identity fraud.
Kingston 4 Increase in breaking and entering; partially offset by decrease in fraud, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting) and sexual assault (level 1).
BellevilleTable 12 Note 7 -10 Decrease in breaking and entering, attempted murder, homicide, robbery, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting) and sexual assault (level 1); partially offset by increase in child pornography.
Peterborough 14 Increase in homicide, fraud, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting) and robbery; partially offset by decrease in sexual assault (level 1) and breaking and entering.
Toronto -15 Decrease in breaking and entering, robbery and shoplifting of $5,000 or under.
Hamilton -8 Decrease in breaking and entering, as well as fraud and robbery; partially offset by increase in violent firearms offences.
St. Catharines–Niagara -10 Decrease in breaking and entering, as well as fraud and importation or exportation of cannabis under the Cannabis Act.
Kitchener–Cambridge–
Waterloo		 1 Increase in identity theft and child pornography; partially offset by decrease in sexual assault (level 1) and robbery.
Brantford -3 Decrease in sexual assault (level 1), violent firearms offences, breaking and entering, motor vehicle theft and shoplifting of $5,000 or under; partially offset by increase in trafficking, production, importation or exportation of cocaine and heroin.
Guelph -3 Decrease in breaking and entering, as well administration of justice violations and theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting); partially offset by increase in homicide and robbery.
London -2 Decrease in theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting).
Windsor 1 Increase in fraud and assault (level 2); partially offset by decrease in theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting).
Barrie -16 Decrease in administration of justice violations, fraud, breaking and entering, robbery and homicide.
Greater Sudbury 7 Increase in identity fraud, homicide, breaking and entering and attempted murder; partially offset by decrease in theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), sexual assault (level 1), administration of justice violations, fraud and shoplifting of $5,000 or under.
Thunder Bay -8 Decrease in breaking and entering, shoplifting of $5,000 or under, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), and robbery; partially offset by increase in trafficking, production, importation or exportation of cocaine, assault (level 2 and 3) and homicide.
Winnipeg -12 Decrease in breaking and entering, robbery, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting) and homicide.
Regina -20 Decrease in breaking and entering, and theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), as well as motor vehicle theft and fraud; partially offset by increase in homicide.
Saskatoon -10 Decrease in breaking and entering, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), robbery, sexual assault (level 1) and fraud.
LethbridgeTable 12 Note 7 -3 Decrease in theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), administration of justice violations and fraud; partially offset by increase in homicide, breaking and entering and trafficking, production, importation or exportation of other drugs.
Calgary -17 Decrease in breaking and entering, as well as robbery, theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting) and motor vehicle theft; partially offset by increase in homicide.
Edmonton -9 Decrease in shoplifting of $5,000 or under, fraud, robbery and theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting); partially offset by increase in homicide.
Kelowna -8 Decrease in breaking and entering and theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting); partially offset by increase in homicide and child pornography.
Abbotsford–Mission -11 Decrease in breaking and entering and theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), as well as shoplifting of $5,000 or under; partially offset by increase in homicide.
Vancouver -7 Decrease in theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting), as well as breaking and entering and shoplifting of $5,000 or under; partially offset by increase in child pornography and importation or exportation under the Cannabis Act.Table 12 Note 4
Victoria 3 Increase in child pornography, breaking and entering and homicide; partially offset by decrease in theft of $5,000 or under (non-shoplifting).
Note 1

A census metropolitan area (CMA) consists of one or more neighbouring municipalities situated around a major urban core. A CMA must have a total population of at least 100,000 of which 50,000 or more live in the urban core. To be included in the CMA, other adjacent municipalities must have a high degree of integration with the central urban area, as measured by commuting flows derived from census data. A CMA typically comprises more than one police service.

Return to note 1 referrer

Note 2

CMA populations have been adjusted to follow policing boundaries.

Return to note 2 referrer

Note 3

The Oshawa CMA is excluded from this table due to the incongruity between the police service jurisdictional boundaries and the CMA boundaries.

Return to note 3 referrer

Note 4

The Montréal CMA in Quebec accounted for the majority of the national decrease in importation or exportation offences reported under the Cannabis Act, decreasing 72% (4,180 fewer incidents) from 2019 to 2020. The large decrease in offences year-over-year was due in part to fewer postal seizures and seizures conducted by the Canada Border Services Agency in Montréal since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the Vancouver CMA in British Columbia accounted for 56% of all importation or exportation offences reported under the Cannabis Act (4,194 of the 7,552 offences reported nationally). The high proportion of offences was due in part to seizure cases, conducted by the Canada Border Services Agency and the Canada Post Mail Centre in the Vancouver CMA, being forwarded for processing and investigation. As a result of this exchange, the year in which occurrences were reported by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police may not always correspond to the year in which they occurred.

Return to note 4 referrer

Note 5

Gatineau refers to the Quebec part of the Ottawa–Gatineau CMA.

Return to note 5 referrer

Note 6

Ottawa refers to the Ontario part of the Ottawa–Gatineau CMA.

Return to note 6 referrer

Note 7

As of the 2016 Census, Belleville and Lethbridge became new CMAs.

Return to note 7 referrer

Note: Violations driving the change in Crime Severity Index (CSI) are identified, in order of impact, as those violations where the combined changes in the rates (weighted by the CSI weight) contribute substantially to the overall change in CSI (up or down).
Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey.
Date modified: