Prince Albert's CSI is down nearly 20%

PRINCE ALBERT — In 2024, the Crime Severity Index for the City of Prince Albert has decreased nearly 20 per cent over the previous year. Violent crime, in particular, decreased 18 per cent, while non-violent crime decreased nearly 21 per cent.

The 2024 CSI statistics released Tuesday by the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics (Statistics Canada) tracks changes in the severity of crime in Canada from year to year.

Prince Albert’s Crime Severity Index reflects a significant decrease compared to the Canadian CSI which decreased four per cent in 2024. The overall CSI for the province of Saskatchewan is down five per cent, while violent crime is down three per cent and non-violent crime is down six per cent. Overall, Prince Albert’s Crime Severity Index saw one of the largest decreases in the province of Saskatchewan.

“The reduction in Prince Albert’s Crime Severity Index is an encouraging development and a positive signal for our community,” said Chief of Police Patrick Nogier. “While many factors can influence these numbers, we are cautiously optimistic that the collective focus on targeted enforcement, internal restructuring, and increased presence in key areas is having a meaningful impact. The Prince Albert Police Service remains committed to evidence-based policing, ongoing community collaboration, and adapting our strategies to meet the evolving needs of public safety.”

A statement issued by the Prince Albert Police Service says it has been consistent in efforts to reduce crime in the city, from its critical frontline patrol to the many valuable specialized units.

In 2024, members of the Prince Albert Police Service Combined Traffic Services Saskatchewan (CTSS) unit were reassigned to focus on traffic safety within the city. As a result, more tickets were issued in 2024 than in the two years prior. However, the number of tickets remains significantly lower than in 2020 and 2021. This reassignment also resulted in more police presence on the streets of Prince Albert.

Several proactive policing initiatives were also launched in 2024. In March, the Saskatoon Police Service Air Support Unit (ASU) assisted PA Police with a two-day police operation in Prince Albert targeting vehicles evading police. In 2024, there were nearly 200 less dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and evading police incidents than the year prior.

The 2024-26 Strategic Plan was announced which outlined four main priorities for the service, public safety celebrating culture, community connections, and leadership. These four priorities contain a number of goals that help guide the police service while working towards a common goal. One of those many goals is increasing internal efficiencies in how the organization operates and in 2024, multiple areas of the service were restructured to increase police presence and patrol availability. The Alternative Call Response Unit (ACR), as an example, demonstrates the enhanced way of managing select calls for service in order to ensure patrol units are available for high priority calls.

The Crime Reduction Team (CRT) is also making a positive impact through the seizure of illicit substances and firearms from Prince Albert streets, says PAPS. including the removal of 130 illegal firearms from the community in 2024. While this number is down from 2023, it is up significantly from the years prior.

CRT also continued its effort against drug trafficking in the community. An additional 3,457 grams of cocaine, 1,585 grams of methamphetamine and 760 grams of crack cocaine were removed from the city.

Break and enters, vehicle thefts, thefts under $5,000, shoplifting and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle or evading police are examples of non-violent crime that can influence the Crime Severity Index. In 2024, all of these crimes were down from the previous year, with the exception of shoplifting, said PAPS. The largest decreases were seen in vehicle thefts and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle or evading police.

Regarding violent crime that influence the Crime Severity Index, including sexual assaults, robberies, assaults and homicides, PAPS points out that while sexual assaults increased slightly year over year in 2024, robberies and assaults decreased significantly. There were five homicides in 2024, which is one more than in 2023. However, this is major decrease from 2020 to 2022 when there were 11, 10, and nine.