Overall crime in the second quarter of 2019 fell by 12 per cent in St. Albert compared to the same period of time in 2018, according to a recent RCMP report.
The RCMP's second quarter report tracked crime from July 1 to Sept 30 and showed a total drop in Criminal Code offences from 1,203 in the second quarter of 2018 to 1,054 in the same quarter of 2019.“We’ve got a lot of good people that are working really hard,” said Insp. Pam Robinson, detachment commander at the St. Albert RCMP.
Those statistics include a 43-per-cent decrease in the number of assaults this Q2. Robinson attributes that to a decrease in assaults on peace officers – which spiked during last year's second quarter – and decrease in assaults causing bodily harm.
Robinson said overall policing is a dangerous job.“Any assault to a police officer is serious. Our officers are trained to conduct continuous risk assessments, identify mental health concerns and act appropriately in scenarios, but often we have to use split-second decisions to be able to react in unfolding situations,” Robinson said.
The top cop said while they are constantly putting safety first, officers can’t predict offender behaviours.
“Often, officers get assaulted during the apprehension of the offenders. So we put out continuous reminders to our officers, that officer safety is necessary to maintain public safety,” Robinson said.
Domestic violence offences also dropped from 44 assaults to 37. Robinson said this is in part thanks to a new domestic violence unit that started up in the city a year ago. The unit, made up of two officers, is tasked with understanding the complexities behind domestic violence situations and helping find ways to stop it from happening in the city.
Robinson said domestic violence cases are complex because of the complexities within relationships, including family components, financial components and social components.
“There are a lot of different factors that contribute to that relationship that often result in violence,” Robinson said.
The unit reviews domestic violence files and connects victims with services to make sure they are getting the proper supports. These services can include housing or connecting them with a community network to decrease isolation and the officers will even act as liaisons between the justice system and the victims to help them through the process. They also help with offender management and support.
“If there's something within the relationship that we can identify the primary issue causing the stress that results in the violence, whether it’s a drug addiction, whether its financial strain, whether its employment, it’s the ability to identify those root causes and use a proactive, strategic, preventative approach that suits the needs of a particular client,” Robinson said.
Since the unit started a year ago, she said the unit has been “absolutely 100 per cent valuable” to the RCMP in helping to prevent domestic violence in the city.
Overall drop in crime since 2018
Crime statistics dropped in most categories, with robberies down by 33 per cent, uttering threats down by 50 per cent, possession of stolen goods down by 51 per cent, offensive weapons charges down by 51 per cent and kidnapping/hostage/abductions down by 75 per cent.
However, many offences went up when compared to the second quarter of 2014.
Overall, between 2014 and 2019, Criminal Code offences went up by 10 per cent, with crimes against persons increasing by 18 per cent and property crimes increasing by 11 per cent.
Robinson said while offender behaviour is unpredictable, one of the reasons crime may be dropping in the community over the last year is the strong relationship the RCMP has with residents.Meth use up
While many crimes are down, the Criminal Code offences for trafficking of methamphetamines, also known as crystal meth, are slightly up in the city. In Q2 2018 there were 15 charges laid, and in the second quarter of 2019 there have been 20 charges laid.
Robinson said this trend is consistent with what is happening across the entire province as crystal meth use continues to rise. The inspector said local officers are working hard to target traffickers of that drug in the city because of the big impact these drugs can have.
“(All types of) drug use ... often result in duplicate calls of service. So often we're dealing with the same vulnerable population, being the people that are addicted to drugs that are involved in property offences, and sometimes mental health calls for service or even violent offences,” Robinson said.
Along with an increase in meth use, distracted driving numbers in the city continue to be high. Robinson said this year the RCMP was targeting distracted driving after they saw it was a major factor in collisions in the city from the annual traffic safety report, and they issued 308 violations and tickets for the offence. The RCMP also targeted speed (194 tickets or warnings), following too closely (79 tickets or warnings) and careless driving (20 tickets or warnings). All of the offences were outlined in the traffic safety report as being major causes of collisions in the city.
“Our ultimate goal is the safety of our roadways and trying to promote and encourage that through education and enforcement,” Robinson said.
Robinson said distracted driving includes anything that takes your attention off the road.
“It's an activity while you're operating a vehicle that impairs your ability to operate it by having complete control of the vehicle and clear vision,” Robinson said.
Flossing, watching movies or videos, reading, texting and inputting information into a GPS system can all earn you a distracted driving ticket.
