Police-reported crime statistics in Canada, 2021

Since 1962, Statistics Canada has collected information on all criminal incidents reported by Canadian police services through its annual Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Survey.^Note   In addition to the UCR, Statistics Canada also collects information on self-reported criminal victimization through the General Social Survey (GSS) on Canadians’ Safety (Victimization), which is conducted every five years. Unlike the UCR, the GSS on Victimization collects self-reported data which includes incidents that may not have been brought to the attention of the police. These complementary surveys provide a more complete picture of crime and victimization in Canada.

This Juristat article presents findings from the 2021 UCR Survey to provide information on police-reported crime across Canada and over time.^Note  To publish police-reported crime statistics in a timely manner, this article relies mostly on aggregate data (totals), which are the first crime data available each calendar year. To inform some community safety issues which are particularly relevant to the pandemic, such as family violence and hate crime, this article also draws on detailed disaggregated data on the characteristics of incidents, victims and accused persons. These disaggregated data will also be available for custom requests and will be included in future analytical products.^Note  Crime counts presented in the article are based on the most serious violation in a criminal incident (see Key terminology and definitions).

This article first provides an overview of important context surrounding crime in Canada given the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. This is followed by an analysis of key statistical trends in crime reported by police in 2021, including the volume and severity of crime, and the offences driving these trends. It then briefly explores other selected violation types that may have contributed to recent crime trends or for which these latest data can help to inform prior publications. Finally, the article describes trends for youth accused of committing crime.As in prior years, this publication provides a general summary of police-reported crime in Canada in 2021, laying groundwork for future detailed data analysis.

COVID-19 context for police-reported crime statistics in 2021

Police-reported crime statistics reflect only those incidents that are reported to the police, which can be affected by large-scale criminal events, social movements and changes in legislation, policies and procedures (see Text box 1).

The COVID-19 pandemic continued to have profound impacts on Canada’s economy, health care system and society in general throughout 2021. Early in the first year of the pandemic, policies enacted to contain the spread of the virus resulted in unprecedented disruptions in the social and economic lives of Canadians, changing how we interact, socialize, learn, work and consume. The pandemic continued to impact Canadians, but perhaps in a different way, as restrictions began to lift across the country. The pandemic has also had major social and economic impacts on Canadians, some of which were short-term changes as an acute response to the ongoing situation, and some of which are longer-term. Crime trends reflect these evolving circumstances in 2021. Information on the broader social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic can be found on Statistics Canada’s COVID-19 hub.

Since March 2020, the vast majority of Canada’s population were typically spending more time at home and many businesses closed or turned to new methods of operation, often online. These changes have, at least partially, affected crime patterns across the country. With the advent of vaccination programs and government-led reopening plans, many Canadians returned to in-person work and education in the second year of the pandemic, while others continued to work and learn remotely. In general, though there were shifting situations and differential jurisdictional responses to emergent waves of the coronavirus in communities, the pandemic has resulted in people tending to stay home more often, reducing contacts with others, and using the Internet more often than prior to the pandemic.

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Canada’s Crime Severity Index stable in the second year of the pandemic, but violent crime went up

Canada’s Crime Severity Index (CSI) was stable in the second year of the pandemic—changing from 73.9 in 2020 to 73.7 in 2021 (Chart 1; Table 1). This follows a 7% drop in the CSI in 2020, the first after five years of increases. The stability in the CSI was predominantly the result of decreases in non-violent crime—such as breaking and entering, and to a lesser extent, decreases in theft of $5,000 or under—offset by increases in violent crime. The Non-violent CSI—which includes all property offences—declined 3%, after a 9% drop in 2020. The overall CSI was 5% lower than a decade earlier in 2011.

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The Violent Crime Severity Index rose in 2021, largely due to more police-reported level 1 sexual assaults

In contrast to declines in the Non-violent CSI, there was an increase in the Violent CSI driven by a relatively large increase in the rate of level 1 sexual assault (+18%).^Note  Various other violent crimes also increased in volume in 2021, however they had a more marginal impact on the CSI. These include: sexual violations against children, assault (level 1 and 2), homicide, extortion, harassing and threatening behaviours, and violent firearm violations. Overall, the Violent CSI increased 5% in 2021 to 92.5. This follows a 3% drop in 2020, after five years of increases. By comparison, the value in 2021 was higher than in 2019, and 8% higher than a decade ago.

The CSI measures the volume and severity of police-reported crime in Canada, and has a base index value of 100 for 2006. The police-reported crime rate, which measures only the volume of crime, was nearly stable, rising 1% from 2020 to 2021 (Table 2). Canadian police services reported just over 2 million Criminal Code incidents (excluding traffic) in 2021, about 25,500 more than in 2020. The relative stability was mostly the result of counteracting fluctuations in violent crime and property crime. The annual rates of violent crime (+5%) and other (non-property) Criminal Code offences (+2%) increased, while property crime (-1%) decreased for the second year in a row. Additionally, the rate of police-reported drug offences under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA) and the Cannabis Act decreased 9% in 2021 (Table 3).

Although the CSI and the crime rate are separate measures, with the CSI accounting not only for volume but also changes in the relative severity of police-reported crime (see Text box 2), both measures show similar trends in police-reported crime in Canada since 1998 (Chart 2; Chart 1).

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Changes in the Crime Severity Index varied across Canada

Across the provinces and territories, there were contrasting annual changes in the CSI, resulting in general stability nationally. Between 2020 and 2021, 6 of Canada’s 10 provinces and Nunavut reported increases in their CSI, while the others reported decreases (Table 4). As has been the case since 1998, the Prairie provinces and British Columbia have had the highest CSIs among the provinces, while the three territories have reported the highest CSIs overall (Chart 3).^Note 

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Among the provinces, Quebec (+5%) and Ontario (+1%) reported increases in their CSIs in 2021 and therefore had the largest mitigating impacts on the change in the CSI. The rise in Canada’s two largest provinces was primarily due to relatively large increases in level 1 sexual assault, as well as an increase in general fraud in Quebec and homicide in Ontario, while there were declines in breaking and entering (Table 5).

In contrast, the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia had the largest relative impact on decreases in the national CSI, falling 7% and 5%, respectively. The violations driving these decreases were breaking and entering, theft of $5,000 or under, and to a lesser extent, general fraud. As was the case at the national level, both provinces also reported relatively large increases in level 1 sexual assault.

For a summary of detailed information available on the police-reported CSI, including the primary contributors to the changes in CSI in each province and territory, see Text box 2.

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Volume of violent crime reported monthly continued to be at or above pre-pandemic levels

In the second year of the pandemic, monthly counts of police-reported violent crime tended to be at or above pre-pandemic levels (Chart 4).^Note  Overall, the volume of violent crime was 5% higher in 2021 compared with 2019. In contrast, the monthly volume of property crime in 2021 remained lower than prior to the pandemic (-12% overall from 2019 to 2021). As a result, in the latter portion of 2020 through 2021, the general pattern of monthly counts of police-reported crime mostly returned to what had been observed in the months prior to March 2020, when initial pandemic responses began.

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Historically, there has generally been a seasonal pattern to police-reported crime in Canada. Crime was typically at its lowest in the winter months during first and fourth quarters of the year (October through March). Crime would then begin to increase to a peak in July and August, before dropping again in the fall and winter months. People generally socialize more in the summer months, potentially affording more opportunity for crimes to occur or for crime to be more visible. This pattern was disrupted somewhat by the pandemic due to the very low volume of crime reported in the second quarter of 2020 (April to June).

Changes in crime differed in urban and rural areas

Throughout the pandemic, the major categories of crime in urban areas decreased significantly compared with 2019, while violent crime in rural areas increased (Chart 5).^Note  Overall, the crime rate in urban areas decreased 11% from 2019 to 2020, and then remained stable in 2021, while the crime rate in rural areas was down 1% in 2020, followed by a 2% increase in 2021.

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Overall, the violent crime rate in rural areas increased 3% in 2021 compared with 2020, and was 7% higher than in 2019. The rate of property crime in rural areas was 1% lower in 2021 compared with 2019. In contrast, urban areas experienced a significant decrease (-14%) in the rate of property crime in 2020 (as well as an 11% drop in other Criminal Code offences), and another 2% decrease in 2021. Violent crime in urban areas was down 3% in the first year of the pandemic, but rebounded in 2021 to levels higher than in 2019. Said another way, the rural crime rate remained fairly stable from 2019 to 2021, with violent crime increasing throughout the pandemic, while the urban crime rate decreased largely due to less property crime and fewer other Criminal Code offences.

It is important to note that rural areas of Canada are often analyzed as a homogenous group, however, they are subject to high variability, both in terms of crime rate, as well as relative location across the country (Perreault 2019). For example, differences in urban and rural areas were previously noted in the Prairie Provinces relative to other provinces, as well as a distinction between north and south regions. For detailed information on rural Canada, see Statistics Canada’s Rural Canada Statistics Portal.

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Key trends for police-reported crime in Canada in 2021

In 2021, there were significant changes for certain offences that highlight how police-reported crime was evolving in Canada.

The following sections cover a selection of offences that contributed to how police-reported crime evolved in Canada in 2021. Specifically, sexual assault, breaking and entering, theft of $5,000 or under and robbery were important contributors to the change in the Crime Severity Index. Descriptive text boxes provide detail on police-reported family violence, hate-motivated crime, and offences against the administration of the criminal justice system, topics relevant to the dynamics of the pandemic. Additionally, certain offences provide an indicator of how crime continues to shift in Canada, whether or not they directly impacted the CSI, including opioid drug offences, violent firearm crime, fraud, harassing and threatening behaviours and homicide.

Sharp rise in the rate of police-reported level 1 sexual assault

While the overall CSI was stable in 2021, violent crime was up, primarily due to an 18% increase in the rate of level 1 sexual assault. The rise in level 1 sexual assault accounted for 40% of the increase in the Violent CSI. In contrast, the rates of police-reported level 2 and 3 sexual assault decreased 5% and 13%, respectively. In total, level 1 sexual assault accounted for 98% of sexual assaults in 2021.

Overall, there were 34,242 police-reported sexual assaults (level 1, 2 and 3) in 2021, representing 90 incidents per 100,000 population (Table 3; Table 5). This rate was 18% higher than in 2020, and the highest rate since 1996 (the rate was the same as in 1997). Prior to a decrease in 2020, the rate of sexual assault had increased steadily for five years (Chart 6). From 2020 to 2021, the rate of police-reported sexual assault (level 1, 2 and 3) increased in all provinces, but decreased in all three territories (Table 5).^Note 

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Despite the general increase in police-reported sexual assault, as well as considerable public discussion of issues around sexual violence in recent years, the number of sexual assaults reported by police is likely a significant underestimation of the true extent of sexual assault in Canada, as these types of offences often go unreported to police. The most recently available self-reported data, from the 2019 General Social Survey on Canadians’ Safety (Victimization), show that 6% of sexual assault incidents experienced by Canadians aged 15 and older in the previous 12 months were brought to the attention of police (Cotter 2021). Similarly, according to data from the 2018 Survey of Safety in Public and Private Spaces, 5% of women stated that the police found out about the most serious incident of sexual assault they had experienced (Cotter and Savage 2019).

In 2020, pandemic-related lockdown conditions could have exacerbated issues around underreporting of sexual assaults. With widespread stay-at-home orders and overburdened hospital and medical care resources, it may have been more difficult for victims to come forward to report instances of sexual assault, and less likely that a third-party (for example a doctor or teacher) would identify signs of abuse, particularly for children and youth. Likewise, with circumstances around the pandemic evolving in 2021, there may have been more opportunity for individuals to report sexual assaults, but also potentially more opportunity for sexual assaults committed by strangers. There are some indications that family violence services and victims of family violence were disproportionately impacted by the pandemic (see Text box 4).

In 2021, less than one in ten (8%) level 1 sexual assaults reported to police were classified as unfounded, meaning it had been determined through police investigation that the incident reported did not occur, nor was it attempted. This represents a continued decrease in unfounded incidents from a high of 14% in 2017 (Table 6). For comparison, the proportion of common physical assault (level 1) classified as unfounded dropped from 11% in 2017 and has stabilized at 9% in 2021. For more detailed information on the potential impact of unfounded criminal incidents in previous years, refer to Text box 2 in Moreau et al. 2020 and Moreau 2019.

Note that the information presented on sexual assaults excludes incidents of sexual violations against children, as well as child pornography offences. Information on these violations can be found in “Findings for other selected police-reported offences in Canada in 2021.”

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Continued decrease in rates of breaking and entering, theft of $5,000 or under, and robbery

Nationally, decreases in breaking and entering, and to a lesser extent robbery and theft of $5,000 or under, were primary contributors to the declining element of the crime severity index in 2021. As was observed in 2020, these offences were likely impacted by conditions of the pandemic, namely people being at home more often and shifting business models for some retail stores.

In 2021, the rate of breaking and entering declined 10% nationally to 328 incidents per 100,000 population (Table 3). This decline follows a 16% drop in 2020. Since peaking in 1991, the police-reported rate of breaking and entering has generally been declining in Canada (Chart 7). Over the last decade, the rate of breaking and entering has fallen 38%. Despite this decrease, breaking and entering continued to be a relatively common form of property crime; just over 125,500 incidents were reported by police in 2021. Most notably, breaking and entering was the highest contributing violation to the overall CSI in Canada, accounting for 16% of the index (see Text box 2).

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All provinces other than Nova Scotia and New Brunswick reported declines or no change in the rate of breaking and entering in 2021 (Table 5). The largest decreases occurred in Alberta (-17%), British Columbia (-15%) and Quebec (-12%). In contrast, all three territories reported increases in 2021. Given its relatively high volume and CSI weight, changes in rates of breaking and entering had an impact on CSIs in several jurisdictions (see Text box 2 and Appendix A to D). In 2021, 20 out of 35 census metropolitan areas (CMAs)^Note   reported decreases or no change in breaking and entering (Table 7).

In 2021, rates of theft of $5,000 or under dropped 4%, following a 19% decline in 2020. The decline in theft of $5,000 or under was the second largest contributor to the decrease in the general crime severity index, though its impact was small relative to breaking and entering. The drop was fairly localized; among the provinces, Alberta (-15% rate), British Columbia (-12% rate) and Prince Edward Island (-10% rate) reported large decreases in theft of $5,000 or under, while the other provinces reported an increase or no change since last year.

Following a considerable decrease in 2020, rates of shoplifting of $5,000 or under were up 3% in 2021 (Table 3; Chart 7). Still, shoplifting rates were 33% lower than in 2019. Prior to 2020, rates of shoplifting had been increasing for 6 years, with larger increases in 2018 and 2019. As could be expected with nation-wide restrictions generally easing in 2021, rates of shoplifting rose again with some stores opening to in-person shopping. Additionally, technological changes (for example, surveillance cameras and anti-theft devices) and more reporting options, including online reporting to police, may also increase the likelihood that a given incident of shoplifting is reported.

Specific CMAs accounted for large changes in police-reported shoplifting rates in several provinces (Table 7). For example, the rate of shoplifting increased significantly in Halifax and St. John’s, and decreased in Winnipeg and Edmonton. Several CMAs in Ontario experienced large changes up or down, and all four CMAs in British Columbia reported increases.

The national rate of police-reported robbery dropped 5% in 2021, from 51 incidents per 100,000 population to 48 incidents. This follows an 18% decrease the year before. Rates of police-reported robbery had been fairly stable for the five years preceding the pandemic period. Rates of robbery declined or remained unchanged throughout most of Canada in 2021, with the exception of Atlantic Canada (excluding New Brunswick) and Nunavut (Table 5). Rates of robbery also declined or remained the same in 19 of 35 CMAs, however for those that reported an increase, rates increased fairly substantially, with 13 CMAs reporting increases of at least 10% (Table 7). These increases were typically a rebound from decreases reported in 2020.

Police-reported opioid drug offences continue to increase during the pandemic

According to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), the COVID-19 pandemic is worsening the ongoing public health crisis of opioid overdose deaths and hospitalizations. Between January 2016 and December 2021, PHAC reported that 29,052 apparent opioid toxicity deaths had occurred in Canada. During the first year of the pandemic (April 2020 to March 2021), there were 7,362 opioid-related deaths, a 96% increase from the previous year. Since then, the number of deaths has remained high. Of all accidental apparent opioid toxicity deaths in 2021, 86% involved fentanyl or fentanyl analogues. Opioid-related deaths and hospitalizations have also been linked to the use of stimulants such as cocaine and methamphetamine, reflecting the polysubstance nature of the crisis (Special Advisory Committee on the Epidemic of Opioid Overdoses 2022).

A number of factors were cited as possible contributors to a worsening of the opioid overdose crisis during the pandemic, including the increasingly toxic drug supply, increased feelings of isolation, stress and anxiety and limited availability or accessibility of services for people who use drugs (Special Advisory Committee on the Epidemic of Opioid Overdoses 2022).

In 2021, there were 5,996 opioid-related offences in Canada, representing a rate of 16 per 100,000 population, a 13% increase compared to 2020 (Table 8).^Note  This also followed a 37% increase in 2020.All opioid-related drug violations increased in 2021, including more possession, trafficking, production and importation or exportation offences (Table 9). Among the provinces, the highest rates were reported in British Columbia (57 per 100,000 population), Ontario (13) and Alberta (13), with notable increases in Quebec, Ontario and the Prairie provinces (Table 8). The CMAs with the highest rates of opioid-related offences were Lethbridge (124 per 100,000 population) and Kelowna (116), followed by Vancouver (45), Hamilton (37), Abbotsford-Mission (35), Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo (30) and St. Catharines-Niagara (30). In terms of opioid-related deaths, Western Canada continues to be the most impacted region of the country since 2016, but rates have begun to increase in other areas as well, notably in Ontario (Special Advisory Committee on the Epidemic of Opioid Overdoses 2022).

Similar to the previous year, opioid-related offences were the only specific drug type^Note  to experience a significant increase in 2021 compared with 2020. Specifically, police-reported rates of heroin (-32%), ecstasy (-25%), methamphetamine (-20%) and cocaine (-15%) drug offences all decreased. Overall, police-reported rates of cannabis (35 incidents per 100,000 population), cocaine (35), methamphetamine (30) and opioid-related offences (16) were highest among the specific drug types (Table 8).

While the rates of these other drug types decreased, the polysubstance nature of the opioid crisis may impact how particular drug offences, namely those related to methamphetamine and cocaine, are reported, given that only one drug type will be indicated as the most serious violation for a particular criminal incident. According to data reported by PHAC from six provinces and territories, more than half (58%) of accidental opioid toxicity deaths so far in 2021 also involved a stimulant. Of these deaths, 63% involved cocaine, while 53% involved methamphetamines. Similarly, 86% of deaths identified as apparent stimulant toxicity deaths also involved an opioid over the same time period.

For information on cannabis-related drug offences, see “Findings for other selected police-reported offences in Canada in 2021.”

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Continued increases in offences related to harassing and threatening behaviours

In 2021, Canada saw continued increases in the rates of various criminally harassing and threatening behaviours. In particular, criminal harassment (+10% rate per 100,000 population), non-consensual distribution of intimate images (+8% rate), indecent or harassing communications (+4% rate), and uttering threats (+3% rate) all saw increases compared with 2020 (Table 3). These crimes have generally been increasing since around 2017, and notably throughout the pandemic period (Chart 8).

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In addition to legislative amendments and new offences that came into force in 2015 by the former Bill-C13 “Protecting Canadians from Online Crime Act,”^{Note  Note}  the national increases in harassing and threatening offences can be attributed, in part, to increases in the accessibility and use of the Internet and social media. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals are using computers and the Internet more often for school, work and socializing, potentially affording more opportunities for criminal violations that do not require a physical presence. For instance, in 2021, there were almost 15,500 cybercrime-related harassing and threatening behaviour violations, up 1% from 2020, and up 21% from 2019.^Note  The perceived anonymity of the Internet and social media can facilitate criminal harassment, uttering threats and indecent and harassing behaviours (Dhillon 2012; Perrin 2018). In addition, advancements in cell phone technology and the availability of cloud-based sharing platforms could have contributed to the increases seen in the non-consensual distribution of intimate images. Increased focus on the enforcement and reporting accuracy of cybercrime, and increased awareness of cybercrime by both the public and police may have also contributed to the change.

Additionally, some police services have indicated that incidents of extortion involving intimate images or video—“sextortion”— are on the rise in their jurisdictions, especially in light of increased internet usage for work, school and leisure. More generally, extortion is a relatively serious violent crime which involves obtaining anything through coercion (the use of or threat of violence, accusation or menace). The rate of police-reported extortion increased 32% from 2019 to 2020, and 19% from 2020 to 2021. The rate of extortion has generally been increasing over the last 10 years, up 297% from 2011. According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, the nature of extortion has been shifting in the digital world, including the use of hostage-taking scams, ransomware, sextortion and various other digital and electronic scams (CAFC 2022). Over the course of the pandemic, the number of cyber-related extortion offences increased, up 78% from 2019 to 2020, and 18% from 2020 to 2021.

Police-reported fraud stable during the pandemic

The rate of police-reported total fraud was stable during the first two years of the pandemic. After remaining stable at 443 incidents per 100,000 population in 2019 and 2020, the rate dropped less than 1% to 441 incidents in 2021. This rate was 74% higher than the rate reported a decade ago (Chart 9).^Note  The general stability was the result of small shifts in the three fraud subtypes: a 1% decline in general fraud, the most voluminous type of fraud, as well as a 3% decline in identity theft, offset by a 3% increase in identity fraud.^Note 

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New or evolving scams continue to draw the attention of the Canadian Anti-fraud Centre (CAFC) and the news media, particularly those involving tax returns with the Canada Revenue Agency, COVID-19-related scams including Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) scams, fake vaccines and fake test results, as well as other general online, telephone or text message scams (CAFC 2022). A survey on cyber security during the pandemic showed that just over 4 in 10 Canadians (42%) experienced at least one type of cyber security incident since the beginning of the pandemic, including phishing attacks, malware, fraud, and hacked accounts (Statistics Canada 2020a). Of those who experienced a cyber security incident, less than one-third (29%) reported the incident to a relevant service provider, financial institution or credit card company, and just 5% of individuals reported the incident to an authority such as the police. According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, from March 2020 to March 2022, there were 29,513 victims and $8.17 million lost due to COVID-related fraud alone.

While fraud overall was fairly stable throughout the pandemic, incidents of reported cyber-related fraud increased substantially. From 2019 to 2020, the total number of cyber-related fraud violations increased 41%, and rose another 13% from 2020 to 2021. In total, there were nearly 40,000 incidents of cyber-related fraud in 2021.

As is the case for many types of crime, self-reported data suggest incidents of fraud are significantly underreported to police. In particular, according to the 2019 General Social Survey on Victimization, over 5.2 million Canadians aged 15 and older reported having been a victim of fraud in the 5 years preceding the survey. Of those victims, 11% reported the incident of fraud to the police.

While fraud is not an especially severe crime in the CSI, it is a relatively high-volume crime, which contributed to making fraud, typically general fraud, a common driver of the CSI and Non-Violent CSI in several jurisdictions in Canada. For the second year in a row, Western Canada, the Prairies and Ontario reported decreases in the rate of total fraud, while Quebec, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island reported consecutive increases (Table 5). Total fraud decreased in 20 of 35 CMAs in 2021 (Table 7).

Increase in rates of violent and non-violent Criminal Code firearm offences for seventh consecutive year

The Criminal Code specifies a number of violent offences involving the use of a firearm, including discharging a firearm with intent, pointing a firearm and using a firearm in the commission of an indictable offence.^Note  Among these offences specified in the Criminal Code that were reported by police, 46% in 2021 were for discharging a firearm with intent, while another 39% were for pointing a firearm. The remaining 15% were for using a firearm in the commission of an indictable offence. The number of violent offences specific to firearms increased by 194 incidents in 2021 (from 4,187 in 2020 to 4,381 in 2021), resulting in a 4% rate increase (Table 3). This marks the seventh consecutive annual increase. The rates of discharging a firearm with intent (+8%) and using a firearm in the commission of an indictable offence (+3%) increased, while the rate remained stable for pointing of a firearm. Much of the increase in firearm-related offences in 2021 was the result of more incidents in Quebec (+128) and Manitoba (+78), while there were fewer incidents in Ontario (-71).

In addition to the violent offences involving a firearm specified in the Criminal Code, other more serious crimes such as homicide, robbery, assault and sexual assault may have also involved a firearm. To measure all violent firearm-related crime, information on the incident characteristics must be used. In 2021, there were 8,047 victims of violent crime where a firearm was present during the commission of the offence, or a rate of 27 per 100,000 population.^Note  This rate was 5% lower compared with 2020. Despite this year-over-year decline, the rate of firearm-related violent crime has generally been increasing since 2013, when it was at its lowest point since comparable data became available.^Note 

The rate of non-violent weapons violations (e.g., possession of weapons and unsafe storage of firearms) increased 2% from 51 incidents per 100,000 population in 2020 to 52 incidents in 2021, increasing for the seventh consecutive year (Table 3). The vast majority (91%) of these violations were related to possession of weapons offences and breach offences for weapons possession contrary to an order.

For detailed information on firearm-related violent crime in Canada, see Allen 2022.

National homicide rate increases for third year in a row

In 2021, police reported 788 homicides, 29 more than the previous year. The national homicide rate increased 3% from 2.00 homicides per 100,000 population in 2020, to 2.06 homicides per 100,000 population in 2021. This follows a 9% increase in 2020. Overall, homicides represented 0.2% of all violent crimes, a similar proportion to previous years (Table 3; Chart 10; data table 35-10-0068-01).

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Overall, the increase in the national number of homicides was the result of more homicides in Ontario (+37 homicides, which follows two years of decreases) and British Columbia (+25 homicides). In contrast, Alberta (-23 homicides, which follows two years of increases) and Nova Scotia (-14 homicides, which follows a large increase in 2020 as a result of the mass shooting that occurred in the province)^Note  recorded relatively large decreases. As has been the case with provincial comparisons historically, rates were highest in Saskatchewan (5.93 homicides per 100,000 population) and Manitoba (4.41). A high rate was also observed in Yukon (9.31 homicides per 100,000 population) and Nunavut (5.08), while there was one homicide reported in the Northwest Territories in 2021. The relatively small population counts in the Territories typically translate to higher and more variable rates (Table 5; data table 35-10-0068-01).

In 2021, Regina (5.67 homicides per 100,000 population), Thunder Bay (5.63) and Winnipeg (5.39) recorded the highest homicide rates among CMAs (Table 7). Trois-Rivières and Guelph were the only CMAs with no homicides in 2021.

With 117 homicides, Toronto, Canada’s most populous CMA, had the most homicides in 2021, but the 16^th highest rate. Toronto’s rate rose 11% as a result of 12 more homicides. Among the CMAs, Vancouver (+14 homicides), Toronto (+12) and London (+8) reported the largest increases in the number of homicides from 2020 to 2021.

Rate of Indigenous victims of homicide decreases in 2021, but remains disproportionately high

In 2021, there were 190 Indigenous victims of homicide,^Note  a decrease from 208 in 2020. This represents a rate decrease of 11% for Indigenous peoples in 2021 (9.17 per 100,000 Indigenous peoples in 2021 compared to 10.28 in 2020). This rate was approximately six times higher than the rate for non-Indigenous people in 2021 (1.55 per 100,000 non-Indigenous people).^Note  Of the 190 Indigenous victims of homicide, 65% were identified by police as First Nations people, 6% as Métis and 5% as Inuk (Inuit). For an additional 24% of Indigenous victims of homicide, the Indigenous group to which they belonged was not identified. For more information on Indigenous victims of homicide, see data table 35-10-0156-01.

The number of female Indigenous victims increased from 42 to 45, while the number of male victims fell by 21 (from 166 to 145).The highest rate of homicide was among Indigenous males (14.13 homicides per 100,000 population), followed by Indigenous females (4.31 per 100,000 population) and non-Indigenous males (2.30 per 100,000 population). Homicide rates were lowest among non-Indigenous females (0.80 per 100,000 population), in line with previous years.

Historical and ongoing impacts of colonization, including for example the lasting effects of the residential school system (the last of which closed in 1996), forced relocation and the Sixties Scoop, is identified as having profoundly impacted Indigenous communities and families (Bombay et al. 2014; Bombay et al. 2011; Bombay et al. 2009; MMIWG 2019; The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada 2015). Indigenous people often experience social, economic and institutional marginalization, and systemic racism and discrimination, which include various forms of trauma and violence—including intergenerational trauma and gender-based violence. As a result, many Indigenous people experience challenging social and economic circumstances (Arriagada et al. 2020; MMIWG 2019; Statistics Canada 2020b; The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada 2015). These factors play a significant role in the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system and as victims of crime (Ontario Human Rights Commission 2003; House of Commons 2018).

For more information on homicide victims by age group, gender and Indigenous identity, see data tables 35-10-0156-01 and 35-10-0060-01.

Almost one-third of homicide victims were identified by police as persons designated as racialized

Of the 762 victims of homicide in 2021 for whom information was available, almost one-third (32%) or 247 victims were identified by police as persons of a population group designated as racialized.^Note  The rate of homicide for racialized persons was higher than the previous year, increasing 34% from 1.87 victims per 100,000 population in 2020 to 2.51 victims in 2021. In 2021, the rate of homicide among racialized victims was higher than victims among the rest of the population (1.81). Almost half (49%) of racialized victims were identified by police as Black,^Note  and a further 19% were identified as South Asian.^Note 

In 2021, there were 46 female homicide victims who were designated as racialized, an increase of 27 victims from 2020. Among male victims, there were 199 racialized victims compared with 158 in 2020, an increase of 41 victims. Consequently, the homicide rates for these populations also increased year-over-year. For racialized female victims, the homicide rate was 0.92 victims per 100,000 population, an increase of 137% from 2020 (0.39). Notably, even with the large year-over-year increase, this rate is much lower than the national homicide rate of 2.06 per 100,000.^Note  Among racialized males, the 2021 homicide rate was 4.10 victims per 100,000, a 23% increase from 2020.

The homicide rate for racialized males was more than one and a half times higher than that of males of the rest of the population in 2021 (4.10 victims per 100,000 racialized males compared with 2.59 male victims from the rest of the population). For females, the opposite was true—in 2021, racialized females had a lower homicide rate than their female counterparts (0.92 victims per 100,000 population compared with 1.03 population), and both lower than the national average of 2.06. Caution should be used when interpreting rates among racialized populations because the relatively small population counts typically translate to more unstable rates.

Of the 604 accused persons for whom police reported a racialized identity in 2021, police reported 33% as belonging to a group designated as racialized.^Note 

For more information on homicide victims by gender, racialized identity and population group, see data tables 35-10-0208-01 and 35-10-0206-01.

A detailed analytical Juristat on Homicide in Canada for the year 2021 will be released in late 2022.

Four in ten homicides are firearm-related

In 2021, 41% of all homicides were firearm-related, similar to the proportion seen in 2020 (39%).^Note 

The firearm was recovered in 29% of firearm-related homicides (84 of 287 firearm-related homicides).^Note  Of those where the firearm was recovered, 69% were sent for tracing by police services.^Note  While both the RCMP and the Ontario Provincial Police provide firearm tracing support to law enforcement agencies when the information is required to support a criminal investigation or a prosecution, no province currently requires that investigators send all crime guns for tracing. For 57% of the 54 firearms sent for tracing in 2021, the origin was unknown, meaning they had either not yet received the results or the trace was unsuccessful. Another 27.8% originated from Canada, 11.1% from the United States and 3.7% from other countries.

Of the 297 firearm-related homicides that occurred in 2021, almost half (46% or 137 homicides) were considered by police to be gang-related.

Rate of gang-related homicide highest since data collection began in 2005

Nationally, there were 184 gang-related homicides in 2021, 33 more than in 2020. The majority (74%) were committed with a firearm, most often a handgun (65%). In 2021, gang-related homicide committed with a firearm represented 17% of all homicides, a larger proportion than in 2020 (14%). Overall, gang-related homicides continued to account for about one-quarter (23%) of all homicides and marked the highest rate (0.48 per 100,000 population) recorded in Canada since comparable data were first collected in 2005. For more information on gang-related homicide, see data table 35-10-0075-01.

Findings for other selected police-reported offences in Canada in 2021

Each year there are over 2 million criminal offences reported by police in Canada. Depending on the relative volume or severity of an offence, it may not be considered among the primary contributors to changes in crime in a given year. Some crimes may be important from a public policy or safety perspective, despite not necessarily having a considerable impact on annual changes in crime. This section provides information for the year 2021 for selected criminal offences and, where possible, includes links to detailed analytical articles that have previously been published by the Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics.

Human trafficking stable in 2021

Trafficking in persons, also known as human trafficking, involves recruiting, transporting, transferring, receiving, holding, concealing or harbouring a person, or exercising control, direction or influence over the movements of a person, for the purpose of exploiting them or facilitating their exploitation (Criminal Code 1985). Victims tend to disproportionately come from vulnerable or marginalized populations, mostly young women or children, and due to the hidden nature of human trafficking, the true scope is underestimated (Public Safety Canada 2019; Department of Justice Canada 2015).

In 2021, there was a combined total of 552 incidents of human trafficking offences reported under the Criminal Code (352 incidents) and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) (200 incidents) (Table 3).^Note  This was essentially the same as in 2020, when 553 incidents were reported. Overall, the combined number of incidents and rate of human trafficking has been on an upward trend since 2011. Historically, human trafficking incidents tend to occur in urban centres, notably in Toronto, Ottawa, Montréal and Halifax.

For detailed information on human trafficking over time—including discussion of incident characteristics, victims and accused persons—in Canada, see Conroy and Sutton 2022.

Child sexual exploitation and abuse increased in 2021

While many police-reported crimes declined during the pandemic, the rate of police-reported child pornography^Note  increased 31% from 2019 to 2021, to a rate of 31 incidents per 100,000 population.^Note  This follows a 47% increase in 2019 and the rate has generally been trending upward since 2008. Overall, there were 11,790 incidents of child pornography reported by police in 2021 (Table 3). Similarly, sexual violations against children^Note  have also increased throughout the pandemic, including a 14% rise in 2021. The combined rate of sexual violations against children was 32 incidents per 100,000 population in 2021.

For many child sexual exploitation and abuse violations, the incidents that occur are committed online as cybercrimes. For instance, 61% of incidents of child pornography and 20% of sexual violations against children were recorded as cybercrimes.^Note  The pandemic has potentially exacerbated issues related to cybercrimes for these offences as children have been more likely to be staying at home and individuals are more likely to use the internet to engage with others.

For a detailed discussion of online child sexual exploitation and abuse in Canada, see Ibrahim 2022b. For a detailed discussion of important context related to the reporting of child pornography incidents, see section “Continued increase in rate of police-reported child pornography” in Moreau 2021.

Cannabis offences in 2021

Nationally, the total rate of police-reported cannabis offences under the Cannabis Act and Controlled Drugs and Substances Act increased for the first time in 9 years, rising 5% in 2021 (Table 8 and Table 9).^Note  Previously, a general decrease in cannabis-related offences had been compounded by the legalization of cannabis on October 17, 2018. The Cannabis Act provides a legal framework for the legalization and regulation of the production, distribution, sale, possession, importation and exportation of cannabis in Canada (Parliament of Canada 2018).

Police reported a total of 13,560 cannabis-related incidents, representing a rate of 35 incidents per 100,000 population. The most commonly reported offences were related to importation or exportation (66% of all Cannabis Act offences), possession (9%), and distribution (8%) (Table 9).

The increase in police-reported cannabis offences was almost entirely the result of more importation and exportation offences, mainly in British Columbia and Quebec. Case processing and investigation procedures for these offences in particular impact police-reported metrics.^Note  Excluding importation and exportation offences, the national rate of other cannabis offences decreased 11% in 2021.

Impaired driving decreased in 2021

Police reported just under 71,500 impaired driving incidents in 2021, about 6,300 fewer incidents compared to the year before (Table 3 and Table 5). This is the second decrease in a row, following a large rate increase in 2019.^Note  Most jurisdictions reported a decrease in the rate of impaired driving, except for Ontario (+7%) and the Northwest Territories (+3) (Table 5). Overall, the police-reported rate of impaired driving in Canada dropped 9% to 187 incidents per 100,000 population.

The majority (78%) of police-reported impaired driving incidents continued to involve alcohol in 2021, however this proportion has been declining in recent years, as a growing proportion of incidents involved drugs (11%), or involved a combination of alcohol and drugs (8%).

The rate of all drug-impaired driving was stable at 20 incidents per 100,000 population between 2020 and 2021, following 7 years of increases. In total, there were 7,690 drug-impaired driving violations in 2021, 69 more than the previous year (Table 3).

For more detailed information on the potential impact of legislative changes, technological and procedural changes, and other context impacting police-reported impaired driving in Canada, refer to Moreau 2021 and Perreault 2021.

Police-reported youth crime

While overall crime statistics are based on the number of criminal incidents reported by police (regardless of whether or not an accused was identified), measures of police-reported youth crime are based on the number of youth, aged 12 to 17, accused in a criminal incident by police.^{Note  Note}  The number of youth accused includes youth who were either charged, or recommended for charge, as well as those who were cleared by other means, including those diverted from the formal criminal justice system through the use of warnings, cautions, referrals to community programs and other diversion programs.

In 2021, there were 53,688 youth accused of a Criminal Code offence (excluding traffic), nearly 1,000 fewer than the previous year. The youth crime rate dropped 3% in 2021 and has been on a long downward trend, declining for over two decades after peaking in 1991 (Table 10; Table 11). The rate of youth accused of violent crime increased 6% in 2021, while the rate of youth accused in other major categories of crime (property crime, other Criminal Code offences, drug crime, other federal statute violations and Criminal Code traffic violations) all decreased. While the youth crime rate increased, the Violent CSI decreased 4%, meaning that the relative severity of violent crime decreased, despite the volume of violent crime going up. Between 2011 and 2021, the rate of youth accused of crime fell 60% and the Youth CSI (YCSI) – which measures both the volume and severity of crime involving youth accused (charged and not charged) – fell 50% (Table 12; Chart 11).

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The decline in the YCSI in 2021 was the result of widespread decreases in the rates of nearly all reported property and some violent violations (Table 10). Most provinces and all three territories experienced decreases in the YCSI, with the exceptions of Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Quebec (Table 13). Due to their small populations and comparatively fewer incident counts, the Territories are more susceptible to considerable year-over-year fluctuations in both their Crime Severity Index and crime rates.

Similar to previous years, the most common criminal offences committed by youth in 2021 were level 1 assault (394 accused per 100,000 youth), mischief (309) and administration of justice violations (197), such as breach of probation and failure to appear (Table 10). Rates of level 2 assault (166 accused per 100,000 youth), uttering threats (156) and shoplifting of $5,000 or under (115) were also relatively high.

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Summary

The second year of the COVID-19 pandemic continued to have an unprecedented impact on the economic and social lives of Canadians. As a result of efforts to contain the spread of the virus, the way people lived, worked and socialized changed drastically, with many people staying at home for long periods of time and avoiding public gatherings and businesses adjusting their operations to serve Canadians in new or different ways. At least partially as a result of these changes, police-reported crime in Canada dropped throughout the pandemic period in general, yet there were important differences for some types of crime.

Police-reported crime in Canada, as measured by the Crime Severity Index (CSI), was stable in the second year of the pandemic—changing from 73.9 in 2020 to 73.7 in 2021. This follows a 7% drop in the CSI in 2020, the first after five years of increases.

The stability in the overall CSI was the result of increases in violent crime and continued decreases in non-violent crime. The Violent CSI rose 5% in 2021, and was higher than in 2019, prior to the pandemic. The increase in violent crime included higher rates of level 1 sexual assault, sexual violations against children, assault (level 1 and 2), homicide, extortion, harassing and threatening behaviours, and violent firearm violations. The Non-violent CSI—which includes, for example, property offences and drug offences—declined 3%, after a 9% drop in 2020. Much of this decline was due to lower rates of breaking and entering (-10%) and theft of $5,000 or under (-4%).

Despite general stability in overall crime in 2021, the number of hate-motivated crimes reported by police increased by 27%, rising from 2,646 incidents to 3,360. Higher numbers of hate crimes targeting religion, sexual orientation and race or ethnicity accounted for the majority of the increase.

Police reported 788 homicides in 2021, 29 more than the year before. The homicide rate increased 3%, from 2.00 homicides per 100,000 population in 2020 to 2.06 in 2021. Police reported 190 Indigenous homicide victims in 2021, 18 fewer than in 2020. Despite the decline, the homicide rate for Indigenous peoples was about six times higher than for Canada’s non-Indigenous population (9.17 versus 1.55 homicides per 100,000 population). Additionally, there were 247 victims of homicide identified by police as members of a population group designated as racialized. The rate of homicide for racialized persons was up 34% from 1.87 homicides per 100,000 population in 2020 to 2.51 homicides in 2021.

To publish police-reported crime statistics in a timely manner, this article relies mostly on aggregate data (totals), which are the first crime data available each calendar year. There will continue to be more detailed analyses of these data and microdata forthcoming to help inform the pandemic situation and Canadian’s safety and wellbeing.

Appendix A – Violations contributing to the change in the Crime Severity Index (CSI) between 2020 and 2021, by province or territory.

Appendix B – Violations contributing to the change in the Violent Crime Severity Index (VCSI) between 2020 and 2021, by province or territory.

Appendix C – Violations contributing to the change in the Non-violent Crime Severity Index (NVCSI) between 2020 and 2021, by province or territory.

Appendix D – Violations contributing to the change in the Crime Severity Index (CSI), by census metropolitan area (CMA), between 2020 and 2021, by province or territory.

Appendix E – Trends in the police-reported Crime Severity Index, provinces and territories, Canada, 1998 to 2021.

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Appendix F – Police-reported Crime Severity Index and Violent Crime Severity Index, by census metropolitan area, 2021.

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Key terminology and definitions

Incident (or Offence): A criminal incident involves one or more related offences that are committed during a single criminal event and have been reported to police. Where there are multiple victims within a single criminal event, a separate aggregate incident is counted for each victim. For example, a single incident involving an assault on three victims at the same time and location is counted in the aggregate statistics as three incidents of assault. For an incident to be counted in the crime statistics it must be recorded as “founded” as opposed to “unfounded.” Police services can report up to four violations for each incident, however, for both the traditional crime rate and the CSI are based on the most serious violation in the criminal incident. For the purposes of this article, offence and incident are used interchangeably.

Most serious violation: Individuals accused of crime are categorized by the most serious violation occurring in the police-reported incident in which they are accused. In incidents with multiple accused involving multiple violations, each individual in the incident will be coded with the most serious violation even if this was not the violation(s) that the person was accused of committing. It is therefore possible that the most serious violation is not the offence for which an individual was accused, but one committed by another accused in the incident. Moreover, in this type of incident, any charges against the accused may be for less serious offences in the incident.

Founded: An incident is “founded” if, after police investigation it has been determined that the reported offence did occur or was attempted (even if the charged/suspect chargeable (CSC) [i.e., the accused] is unknown) or there is no credible evidence to confirm that the reported incident did not take place. This includes third-party reports that fit these criteria. For the Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, the concept of a CSC refers to a person against whom there is enough evidence for police to either lay a charge or recommend to the Crown that a charge be laid. Effective January 1, 2018.

Unfounded: An incident is “unfounded” if it has been determined through police investigation that the offence reported did not occur, nor was it attempted. Effective January 1, 2018.

Census metropolitan area (CMA) and census agglomeration (CA): A CMA or CA is formed by one or more adjacent municipalities centred on a population centre (known as the core). A CMA must have a total population of at least 100,000, of which 50,000 or more must live in the core. A CA must have a core population of at least 10,000. To be included in the CMA or CA, adjacent municipalities must have a high degree of integration with the core, as measured by commuting flows derived from census data. A CMA or CA may have more than one police service. It is important to note that while official police-reported data on crime from the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Survey use Statistics Canada's standard Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) names, the boundaries for the policing-based CMAs do not always fully align with the standard CMA geographic units used for disseminating information about the Census of Population.

Rural and small town area: Rural police services serve a territory where the majority of the population lives outside a CMA or CA. While small towns that do not qualify as CAs are included in this category, the term “rural area” will be used for the sake of brevity. Police services are classified “rural” or “urban” based on the majority of the population they serve, rather than on the exact place of residence of each Canadian. Consequently, urban residents can be served by a police service classified as “rural,” and vice versa. In the interest of conciseness, the terms “rural” (or “rural area”) and “urban” (or “urban area”) are used to designate areas or populations based on the classification of the police services that serve them. The definitions of “rural” and “urban” in this report may differ from those used in other Statistics Canada reports.

Urban: Urban police services serve an area where the majority of the population lives within a CMA or CA.

Violent offences: Involve the use or threat of violence against a person, including homicide, attempted murder, assault, sexual assault and robbery. Robbery is considered a violent offence because, unlike other theft offences, it involves the use or threat of violence. See Table 3 for a list of selected offences in this category.

Homicide: Includes first and second degree murder, manslaughter and infanticide. Deaths caused by criminal negligence, suicide and accidental or justifiable homicide are not included in this classification.

Gang-related homicide: A homicide is classified as gang-related when police confirm or suspect that the accused person and/or victim involved in the homicide was either a member, or a prospective member, of an organized crime group or street gang or was somehow associated with an organized crime group or street gang, and the homicide was carried out as a result of this association. Prior to 2005, police were asked if the homicide was "gang-related". Beginning in 2005, the question was amended to give police the option of specifying whether the homicide was: (a) confirmed as gang-related or (b) suspected as being gang-related.

Firearm-related violent crime: Firearm-related violent crime shows the number of victims of violent Criminal Code offences where a firearm was fired or used as a threat, and/or where a firearm was present and not used but the presence of the firearm was relevant to the incident, according to the police.

Firearm-related homicide: A homicide is classified as firearm-related when the weapon used to cause death is a firearm. Firearms include handguns, rifles or shotguns, fully automatic firearms, firearm-like weapons (e.g. nail guns or pellet guns) and firearms - type unknown.

Assault (physical): Refers to the Criminal Code categories of physical assault.

• Common assault: Includes the Criminal Code category assault (level 1) which includes pushing, slapping, punching and face-to-face verbal threats.
• Major assault: Includes Criminal Code assault level 2 and 3:
  • Level 2–assault with a weapon or causing bodily harm: Involves carrying, using or threatening to use a weapon against a person or causing someone bodily harm.
  • Level 3–aggravated assault: Involves wounding, maiming, disfiguring or endangering the life of a person.
• Other assaults: Includes other forms of physical assault, including assault against a peace officer, unlawfully causing bodily harm, discharging a firearm with intent, using a firearm or an imitation of a firearm in commission of offence, pointing a firearm, criminal negligence causing bodily harm, trap likely to or causing bodily harm, and less common other assaults “of hoax terrorism causing bodily harm (Criminal Code s. 83),” “bodily harm resulting from failure to safeguard an opening in ice or on land (s. 263)” and “otherwise unlawfully causing bodily harm (s. 269).”

Sexual assault: Is classified by level in the Criminal Code into three separate categories—depending on the nature and severity of the incident—including level 1, assault of a sexual nature that violates the sexual integrity of the victim; level 2, sexual assault with a weapon or causing bodily harm involves sexual assault with a weapon, threats to use a weapon or causing bodily harm; and level 3, aggravated sexual assault involves sexual assault that wounds, maims, disfigures or endangers the life of the victim.

Sexual violations against children: Include Criminal Code violations that specifically concern offences involving child and youth victims. These include sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching, sexual exploitation, making sexually explicit material available to children for the purpose of facilitating sexual offences against children/youth, luring a child via telecommunications or the agreement/arrangement by means of telecommunication to commit a sexual offence against a child. As of December 2014, also includes the offences of parent or guardian procuring sexual activity (Criminal Code, s. 170) and householder permitting prohibited sexual activity (Criminal Code, s. 171). A “householder” is any “owner, occupier or manager of premises, or any other person who has control of premises or assists in the management or control of premises” (Criminal Code, s. 171). Incidents of child pornography are not included in the category of sexual violations against children. Excludes incidents of sexual assault level 1, 2 and 3 against children and youth which are counted within those three violation categories.

Other sexual offences: not involving sexual assault or sexual violations against children are included with “other violent offences.”

Non-violent offences: Include property offences and other Criminal Code offences, as well as Criminal Code traffic offences, drug-related offences and violations of other federal statutes.

Property offences: Involve unlawful acts to gain property, but do not involve the use or threat of violence against the person. They include offences such as break and enter, theft and mischief. See Table 3 for a list of selected offences in this category.

Fraud, Identity Theft and Identity Fraud: Broadly, fraud is an offence by which a person defrauds the public or any person of any property, money or valuable security or service (Criminal Code s. 380). Identity theft is an offence by which a person obtains or possesses another person’s identity information with intent to use it to commit an indictable offence (s. 402.2). Identity fraud is an offence by which a person fraudulently personates another person, with intent to gain advantage, property, cause disadvantage or to avoid arrest or prosecution or to obstruct justice (s. 403).

“Other” Criminal Code offences: Include crimes such as disturbing the peace and offences against the administration of justice (e.g., failure to comply with an order, failure to appear and breach of probation).

Drug-related offences: Include offences under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act such as possession, trafficking, production, importation and exportation of drugs or narcotics. Examples include cannabis (prior to the enactment of the Cannabis Act on October 17, 2018), cocaine, heroin and other drugs such as methamphetamine (crystal meth), PCP, LSD and ecstasy. Also includes cannabis-related offences under the Cannabis Act, and beginning in November 2017, violations specific to opioids (excluding heroin but including fentanyl).

Other federal statute violations: Include violations of federal statutes other than the Criminal Code and the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. These include violations of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Detailed data tables

Table 1 Police-reported Crime Severity Indexes, Canada, 2011 to 2021

Table 2 Police-reported crime rate, Canada, 2011 to 2021

Table 3 Police-reported crime for selected offences, Canada, 2020 and 2021

Table 4 Police-reported Crime Severity Indexes, by province or territory, 2021

Table 5 Police-reported crime for selected offences, by province or territory, 2021

Table 6 Police-reported crime and proportion deemed unfounded, selected offences, Canada, 2019 to 2021

Table 7 Police-reported crime for selected offences, by census metropolitan area, 2021

Table 8 Police-reported crime for selected drug offences, by province or territory, 2021

Table 9 Police-reported crime for selected drug offences, Canada, 2020 and 2021

Table 10 Police-reported youth crime for selected offences, Canada, 2020 and 2021

Table 11 Youth accused of police-reported crime, Canada, 2011 to 2021

Table 12 Police-reported youth Crime Severity Indexes, Canada, 2011 to 2021

Table 13 Police-reported youth Crime Severity Indexes, by province or territory, 2021

Table 14 Police-reported crime rate, by province or territory, 2021

Table 15 Police-reported Crime Severity Indexes, by census metropolitan area, 2021

Table 16 Police-reported crime rate, by census metropolitan area, 2021

Survey description

Uniform Crime Reporting Survey

The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Survey was established in 1962 with the co-operation and assistance of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police. The UCR was designed to measure criminal incidents that have been reported to federal, provincial/territorial and municipal police services in Canada.

One incident can involve multiple offences. In order to ensure comparability, counts presented in this article are based on the most serious offence in the incident as determined by a standard classification rule used by all police services. Counts based on all violations are available upon request.

Each year, the UCR database is “frozen” at the end of May for the production of crime statistics for the preceding calendar year. However, police services continue to send updated data to Statistics Canada after this date for incidents that occurred in previous years. Generally, these revisions constitute new accused records, as incidents are solved and accused persons are identified by police. Some new incidents, however, may be added and previously reported incidents may be deleted as new information becomes known.

Revisions are accepted for a one-year period after the data are initially released. For example, when the 2021 crime statistics are released, the 2020 data are updated with any revisions that have been made between May 2021 and May 2022. The data are revised only once and are then permanently frozen. Over the past 10 years (2012 to 2021), data corresponding to previous years have been revised upward 9 times and revised downward 1 time, with an average annual revision of 0.33%. The 2020 revision to counts of persons charged and youth not charged resulted in a 0.8% increase to 2020 counts.

Measuring incidents of crime

Data from the UCR are used to calculate both the traditional crime rate and the Crime Severity Index (CSI). The traditional crime rate and the CSI are based on the aggregate count of criminal incidents. A criminal incident involves one or more related offences that are committed during a single criminal event and have been reported to police. Where there are multiple victims within a single criminal event, a separate aggregate incident is counted for each victim. For example, a single incident involving an assault on three victims at the same time and location is counted in the aggregate statistics as three incidents of assault. For an incident to be counted in the crime statistics it must be recorded as “founded” as opposed to “unfounded.” An incident is “founded” if, after police investigation it has been determined that the reported offence did occur or was attempted or there is no credible evidence to confirm that the reported incident did not take place. This includes third-party reports that fit these criteria.

Police services can report up to four violations for each incident; however, this has typically only been the practice since the late 1980s and not for all police services. Therefore, both the traditional crime rate and the CSI are based on the most serious violation in the criminal incident. By basing the measures on the most serious offence in an incident, it allows for historical comparisons, as well as better comparisons among police services.

It is possible, however, that by counting only the most serious violation, some offences may be under-represented. This has little or no effect on serious violent offences such as homicide, sexual assault and aggravated assault; however, some—but not all—minor offences are less likely to be the most serious violation when they are occurring at the same time as other more serious violations. These secondary offences, therefore, are not included in the calculation of aggregate statistics, the crime rate and the CSI.

To publish the most timely police-reported crime statistics, this article relies on aggregate data (totals), which are the first crime data available each calendar year. More detailed data on the characteristics of incidents, victims and accused persons will be available following the release of this article, and data will be accessible for custom requests or possible inclusion in future editions of Juristat.

For more information on counting crime in Canada, see Measuring Crime in Canada: Introducing the Crime Severity Index and Improvements to the Uniform Crime Reporting Survey (Wallace et al. 2009), The Methodology of the Police-reported Crime Severity Index (Babyak et al. 2009), and Updating the Police-Reported Crime Severity Index: Calculating 2018 Weights (Cormack and Tabuchi 2020).

Crime rate

The traditional crime rate has been used to measure police-reported crime in Canada since 1962, and it is generally expressed as a rate per 100,000 population. The crime rate is calculated by summing all Criminal Code incidents reported by the police and dividing by the population count. The crime rate excludes Criminal Code traffic violations, as well as other federal statute violations such as drug offences.

To calculate the traditional police-reported crime rate, all offences are counted equally, regardless of their severity. For example, one incident of homicide is counted as equivalent to one incident of theft. As such, one limitation of the traditional crime rate is that it can easily fluctuate as a result of variations in higher volume but less serious offences, such as theft of $5,000 or under and mischief. In other words, a large decline in common but less serious violations may cause the police-reported crime rate to decrease even when the number of more serious but lower volume offences, such as homicide and robbery, increased.

In addition to the overall crime rate, rates are calculated for violent crime, property crime and other Criminal Code offences. Further, the rates of youth who have either been charged by police or dealt with through the use of extrajudicial measures are available for all crime categories.

Crime Severity Index

The CSI was developed to address the limitation of the police-reported crime rate being driven by high-volume, but relatively less serious, offences. The CSI not only takes into account the volume of crime, but also the relative severity of crime. As such, the CSI will vary when changes in either the volume of crime or the average severity of crime—or both the volume and the average severity—are recorded.

In order to calculate the police-reported CSI, each violation is assigned a weight. CSI weights are based on the violation’s incarceration rate, as well as the average length of prison sentence handed down by criminal courts.^Note  The more serious the average sentence, the higher the weight assigned to the offence, meaning that the more serious offences have a greater impact on the CSI. Unlike the traditional crime rate, all offences, including Criminal Code traffic violations and other federal statute violations such as drug offences, are included in the CSI.

To calculate the CSI, the weighted offences are summed and then divided by the population. Similar to other indexes (e.g., Consumer Price Index), to allow for ease of comparison, the CSI is then standardized to a base year of “100” (for the CSI, the base year is 2006). All CSI values are relative to the Canada-level CSI for 2006. CSI values are available back to 1998.

In addition to the overall CSI, both a Violent CSI (VCSI) and a Non-violent CSI (NVCSI) have been created, which—like the overall CSI—are available back to 1998. The VCSI is comprised of all police-reported violent violations, and the NVCSI is comprised of all police-reported property violations, other Criminal Code violations, Criminal Code traffic violations, and other federal statute violations. All types of CSI measures are also available for youth who have been accused of a crime (charged and not charged).

To adjust to changes in sentencing patterns from the courts, and amendments to the Criminal Code and other federal statutes, the weights are updated every five years. The most recent update was carried out in 2018 and applies to 2019 revised and 2020 data presented in this article.

For more information on the CSI, see Measuring Crime in Canada: Introducing the Crime Severity Index and Improvements to the Uniform Crime Reporting Survey (Wallace et al. 2009), The Methodology of the Police-reported Crime Severity Index (Babyak et al. 2009), Updating the Police-Reported Crime Severity Index Weights: Refinements to the Methodology (Babyak et al. 2013), Updating the Police-Reported Crime Severity Index: Calculating 2018 Weights (Cormack and Tabuchi 2020), and the Measuring Crime in Canada: A detailed look at the Crime Severity Index video (Statistics Canada 2016).

References

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