Although Statistics Canada is reporting that national crime rates have dropped to their lowest levels since the 1970s, Westlock RCMP say they are not seeing as drastic a drop within the county’s borders.
“I know it ebbs and flows, but I believe our numbers are down a little bit for 2011,” said Cpl. Sandra Milner.
She added that the numbers Statistics Canada produces may not be completely representative of the overall crime rates because of the differences between how the RCMP and Statistics Canada report and compile their data.
“When you’re looking at those statistics, it’s the most serious crimes that are the most relevant,” she said.
What this means, she said, is that there may be a single incident where four charges are laid, but only the most serious charge is recorded for Statistics Canada’s purposes. As such, it’s difficult to determine definitively whether crime has decreased, she said.
Even the drop in youth crime, which is a statistical fact, must be taken with a grain of salt, Milner said. That’s because it’s critical to note that there are fewer youth today than there were 40 years ago, she said.
Furthermore, she said more incidents are addressed through alternate means, and so they don’t make it into Statistics Canada’s numbers.
In addition, Milner said there is also the issue of unreported crimes, which naturally do not appear in any statistical report on crime rates.
“There’s no doubt some crimes are underreported,” she said. “They’re occurring but people aren’t necessarily reporting them.”
She cited fuel thefts from rural properties as a prime example of crimes that the police do not find out about until it’s often too late, which hinders the process of arresting the culprits.
“It’s difficult to gauge when we’re not even informed of things that are going on until long after the fact,” she said.
On the whole, Milner said the Westlock area is like any other part of the country in terms of the types of crimes that are committed here.
“I don’t think this area’s immune from any sort of crime at all,” she said.
In particular, she said crimes related to property are fairly prevalent in the area. Specifically, she said 2010 saw a lot of vehicles stolen in the county, as well as a large number of abandoned vehicles stolen from outside the county and dumped within the county’s borders.
When they’re not actively dealing with crimes committed within the county, Milner said she and her fellow officers do other duties that help them get a feel for the community.
“There’s a lot of informal work done just through personal relationships out on the street that some people may not be aware of,” she said. One example she mentioned specifically was bar walks on the weekends to get to know who the locals are.
Of course, there is one part of the job she said all the officers enjoy.
“I think I speak for all the members here in Westlock, we like to be out and about, especially in the schools and just dropping in and building a rapport with the kids,” Milner concluded.
