Violent crime severity index increases by 15.5%

There has been an increase in violent crime investigated by Windsor police, according the 2023 Crime Severity Index released by Statistics Canada.

Here’s how Windsor and Amherstburg ranked:

• Crime severity index increased by 4.8 per cent
• Violent crime severity index increased by 15.5 per cent
• Non-violent crime severity index increased by 0.6 per cent

Compared with data from 2022, last year saw higher rates of robberies (up 21 per cent) and assaults (up 16 per cent). Of the total number of assaults reported, 45 per cent were related to intimate partner violence.

Primary drivers of non-violent crimes included break and enters (down 12.7 per cent), fraud (up 28 per cent), and shoplifting (up 24.8 per cent).

“We continue to take a data-driven, evidence-based policing approach to promote public safety and reduce crime,” said Deputy Police Chief Jason Crowley. “This strategy includes adjustments to resource allocation and working collaboratively with community partners to address the underlying issues that drive violent crime, such as mental health, substance use, and homelessness.”

The CSI measures changes in the level of severity of crime in Canada from year to year. All crimes are assigned a weight based on their seriousness. The level of seriousness is based on actual sentences handed down by the courts in all provinces and territories.