Red Deer crime severity tumbles in latest StatsCan report

The latest measure of crime rates across Canada saw one of the steepest year-over-year decreases in Red Deer.

According to Statistics Canada's crime severity index, which assesses and tracks the seriousness of crime, Red Deer recorded a 20 per cent decrease from 2023 to 2024.

That's the second-biggest drop among 40 other census metropolitan areas analyzed by StatsCan — only Kamloops came out ahead, with a 21 per cent decrease.

The numbers, released last week, show the crime severity index is down across Alberta. Red Deer RCMP public information officer Const. Cory Riggs said locally, there's been a notable decline in assaults, thefts and break-ins: 2024 saw 369 fewer reported break-ins compared to the previous year.

"Things seem to be going in a good trend," he said.

"But we always have to remember to assess local crime trends in our community, and then we also have to adjust our responses based on that."

With about 112,000 people, Red Deer is the most heavily populated area policed by RCMP in the province. Compared to other parts of Canada, the city's crime severity index is still high — at 118.7, it's well above the national average of 77.9. Only Kamloops, Winnipeg and Chilliwack, B.C. rank higher. 

But it's still a 15-year low for Red Deer's crime severity index, which hit a peak of 222.1 in 2017.

NorQuest College justice studies chair Dan Jones told CBC's Edmonton AM that because the crime severity index changes every year based on court sentencing decisions, it makes comparing the annual numbers difficult.

Finding a definitive reason for why crime rates are down is also tricky, according to Jones.

"Sometimes police agencies have a tendency of going, 'Well, it's because we've done this'," Jones said.

"We have to do a deeper dive and understand why are they going down ... Are people calling the police less because they think the police aren't going to come? Are they calling the police less because they don't want to bother people?"

But he said compared to Edmonton's five per cent decrease to the 2024 crime severity index, Red Deer's numbers are notable.

"What's different in Red Deer? Because 20 [per cent], that's a big drop."

Riggs said efforts at the Red Deer RCMP detachment to improve community outreach and target enforcement efforts toward local crime trends seem to be making a difference.

He added the virtual opioid dependency program, which started as a pilot project in 2024, is also having a positive impact.

It pairs officers with a paramedic to patrol downtown and connect people with addictions to resources, and there's also an effort to intervene with treatment options as soon as someone with an opioid addiction is taken into custody.

"Crimes such as break and enter and theft often go to fuel drug addictions and things of that nature," Riggs said.

"We saw such a big improvement on numbers ... so they made it a permanent unit at the detachment."