Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has directed officials to hire 100 more street-level police officers over the next 18 months to increase the visible law enforcement presence and tackle rising criminal activity in Edmonton and Calgary.
Between July 2022 and January 2023, Edmonton’s LRT and transit centres experienced a 75% increase in violent criminal incidents. In Calgary, overall criminal occurrences at LRT stations increased 46% between 2021 and 2022.
Smith said the province is addressing root causes like mental health and addiction, but won’t compromise on security for Calgarians and Edmontonians meanwhile.
“Safety on public streets is never negotiable,” she said.
“This starts with the federal government reforming its broken catch-and-release bail system and includes us working with cities and police services to fight back against criminals.”
According to a new Leger poll, 68% of Albertans say crime is worse than it was before 2020. Half of the respondents say the situation is a little worse and half say it’s much worse.
Overall, 68% of Albertans say crime is worse than it was before 2020, with half of those respondents saying the current situation is a little worse and half saying it’s much worse. It’s a view that’s consistent among those who intend to vote for the UCP or the NDP in the upcoming provincial election.
That view is consistent among those who support United Conservative Party leader Danielle Smith and Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley.
But, those who plan to vote UCP in this May’s provincial election identify a lack of penalties and lenient sentencing as the biggest reason for increased crime, while intended NDP voters more often name socioeconomic conditions and mental-health issues as key factors.
These views are consistent with statistics tracking the increase in crime.
The average crime severity index in downtown Edmonton has increased 29%, to 116 in December 2022 from 90 in July 2022. This is primarily caused by an increase in serious criminal offences, including second-degree murder, assault causing bodily harm with a weapon, robbery and aggravated assault.
In Edmonton, a person is about twice as likely to be victimized by a stranger at a transit centre than for the city as a whole; 70% at LRT transit versus 36% citywide.
In Calgary, property crime occurrences nearly doubled, increasing 95% to 463 in 2022, up from 238 in 2021. Public-generated calls for service to LRT stations increased to 5,012 in 2022, up 20% from 2021, while officer-generated calls for service to LRT stations increased to 4,305, up 69% from 2021.
Both UCP and NDP voters say drug addiction plays a big role in the data.
The Alberta government is in the process of building six massive recovery centres across the province to treat drug addicts. The Red Deer Recovery Community opened last month.
The new facility is nearly the size of a football field, with 75 beds and the ability to treat up to 300 people per year. There are also recovery communities underway in Lethbridge, Gunn, Calgary, Edmonton and on the Blood Tribe.
