Weyburn criminologist says crime index doesn't tell the whole safety story
Dr. Krystal Glowatski says the index counts reported crime but misses unreported incidents and social factors that shape safety, she said.
- Last week, Statistics Canada released the 2025 Police-Reported Crime Statistics, placing Saskatchewan at the country's highest Crime Severity Index of 146.64, nearly double the national average of 75.
- Local criminologist Dr. Krystal Glowatski warns against using the CSI as the sole indicator of well-being, noting that "The CSI tells us something about crime. It doesn't tell us everything about safety."
- Many incidents go unreported, becoming part of the "dark figure of crime." When serious incidents are measured against populations of just over 5,000 people, statistics create a misleading picture of community reality.
- The City of Duncan adopted a Community Safety Action Plan to address underlying needs. Mayor Michelle Staples stated, "We cannot allow a deeply skewed statistic to define our community."
- Glowatski advocates for community-based solutions addressing social conditions underlying crime. "If we have stronger relationships in our communities that connect us to one another, that's where we will start to see a reduction in harm," she added.
7 Articles
7 Articles
Lake Cowichan Gazette
City of Duncan says Crime Severity Index ranking doesn't tell whole story
Statistics Canada has ranked Duncan as having the highest Crime Severity Index in British Columbia in their 2025 Crime Severity Index (CSI) report, but the City of Duncan said the numbers don’t tell the whole story. While traditional crime rates count the number of reported incidents, the CSI measures both the volume and seriousness of police-reported crime by assigning different weights to offences based on sentencing data. This weighted total …
Sarnia crime severity fell sharply in 2025, but the headline number tells only part of the story
Sarnia’s police-reported Crime Severity Index fell nearly 29 per cent last year, a dramatic decline that far exceeded Ontario’s 6.2-per-cent decrease, but does not mean the city recorded 29 per cent fewer crimes.
Weyburn criminologist says crime index doesn't tell the whole safety story
Saskatchewan again recorded the highest Crime Severity Index in Canada in newly released 2025 police-reported crime statistics, but a Weyburn criminologist says the numbers should not be treated as a full measure of community safety.
Sarnia police report lowest crime severity numbers on record for 2025
Sarnia recorded its lowest overall and non-violent Crime Severity Index numbers on record last year, according to figures released by Statistics Canada. Statistics Canada releases the Crime Severity Index and Weighted Clearance Rate annually. The index accounts for both the volume of crime reported by police and the seriousness of those crimes, while the clearance rate measures how effective police are at solving crime. The 2025 figures show a s…
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