TIMMINS - Police are changing the way it shares crime data.
The Timmins Police Service has been providing raw data on calls for service. The report lays out the number of calls in main categories, such as violent crime, property crime or traffic, and breaks down what kind of incidents there were.
“The Timmins Police Service is in the process of refining how we share crime data to ensure it provides a more meaningful understanding of what is occurring in our community,” said communications coordinator Michelle St. Louis in an email to TimminsToday.
The new approach is still in development.
“Our goal is to ensure the public has access to crime statistics that are informative and easily understood,” said St. Louis.
At the last police services board meeting on Feb. 13, police stats on calls for the first three quarters of 2024 were talked about. While the deputy chief talked about a drop in calls from January to September compared to the same period the year prior, only percentages were presented.
Timmins Police has shared the data talked about at the meeting with TimminsToday.
It shows a drop in break and enters during the first three quarters, going from 277 in 2023 to 187 in 2024. These stats do not include the string of break-ins in December 2024.
Overall property crime dropped by 6.1 per cent, with 1,877 incidents in 2024, and 1,999 in 2023.
The 0.8 per cent drop in violent crime saw a drop to 724 incidents in the first three quarters of 2024, compared to 730 in 2023.
Social disorder incidents are down as well, with 6,007 reported incidents in 2024 down from 6,831 in 2023. Drug offences are down too from 53 in 2023 to 47 in 2024. This category includes a wide range of incidents such as disputes, suspicious people or vehicles, mental health act and more.
Traffic incidents are up from the 2023 numbers going up 8 per cent. In 2024 there were 1,414 incidents compared to 1,309 in 2023.
September 2024 data
Looking at just September 2024, there was an 11.4 per cent drop in overall calls.
For violent crime, there were 92 calls in 2023 and 78 in 2024. Social disorder calls were down 27.8 per cent. In 2024, Timmins Police reported receiving 597 calls compared to 827 in 2023.
Property crime calls were up, with 308 reports in 2024 compared to 284 the year prior.
Traffic calls were also up, with 139 in 2024 and 132 in 2023.
