ESTEVAN - Statistics Canada released its crime severity index (CSI) report for 2022 on Thursday, and it showed that Estevan's number was close to its lowest level in 25 years.
The CSI for Estevan was at 79.54, which was down from the 88.2 recorded in 2021. Also, the CSI for Estevan in 2022 was the third-lowest since the information started being reported for Estevan in 1998. Only 2000 (75.73) and 2017 (75) were lower.
Estevan's violent crime CSI came in at 98.04, much lower than the 153.89 recorded in 2021, when there was a charge for second-degree murder in the city.
The non-violent crime index for Estevan stood at 72.81, up from the 62.69 seen in 2021. Still, the non-violent number for Estevan was the second-lowest in the past 25 years.
Among policing jurisdictions with a population of at least 10,000 people, Estevan came in at 107th out of 330 overall, 94th for violent crime and 109th for non-violent crime.
And among the 11 jurisdictions in Saskatchewan with a population of at least 10,000 people, Estevan was ninth, with only Martensville and Warman lower. Estevan also had the lowest CSI among the six Saskatchewan cities with municipal police forces.
The report also looks at figures for RCMP detachments. The Estevan RCMP had a CSI of 70.30, up from the 2021 number of 63.63. The violent crime index was at 66.88, up from 59.54 a year earlier. The non-violent crime index was at 72.25, up from 65.80 in 2021.
The Carnduff RCMP was at 48.64, up from 37.77 recorded in 2021. The violent crime index rose to 42.68, compared with 34.62 the previous year, while the non-violent rate was at 51.43, compared to 39.34.
The Carlyle RCMP's overall number stood at 111.42, down slightly from 2021 when it stood at 112.26. Violent crime stood at 119.74, which was up considerably from 89.49 the previous year, while non-violent crime was measured at 109.04, down from 122.31 the previous year.
The Crime Severity Index is a measure of police-reported crime that reflects the relative seriousness of individual offences, and tracks changes in crime severity.
The next edition of the Mercury will have more on this story.
