A crime occurs when a person commits an act that violates the law, such as Canada’s Criminal Code. They may face prosecution in the courts and punishment if they are found guilty, such as a fine, community service, probation, or a prison sentence.[1]
Why is this important?
A person who commits a crime might victimize someone else through their actions. Victimization may lead to physical, emotional, and financial consequences for victims/survivors of crime.[2,3] After their victimization, people may experience decreases in their overall wellbeing, social functioning, and sleep quality and increases in anxiety and depression.[3,4] In turn, that may harm intimate and social relationships and ability to participate in work and social activities, and may lead to a deterioration in mental and physical health.[2,4,5] High crime and victimization rates damage community wellbeing and may lead to people not feeling safe.
Individuals who commit crimes are heavily stigmatized. However, many people who commit crimes experience violent victimization and trauma before and throughout their involvement in the criminal justice system.[6] This is known as the “victim-offender overlap.” Experiences of physical, psychological, and sexual violence, systemic oppression (such as anti-Indigenous and anti-Black racism), severe poverty, homelessness, mental illness, substance use disorder, and childhood trauma all lead to a greater likelihood of someone committing a crime.[7-10] Consequently, the most marginalized people in our communities are over-represented in various parts of the criminal justice system, including arrest, pre-trial detention, and prison.[7,8,10] Responses to crime must include empathetic, trauma-informed care for both victims/survivors and criminalized people, and strong social supports within communities that prevent crime from occurring in the first place.[6,7,11]
Severity of Crime |
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Why is the severity of crime important?The traditional crime rate only captures a count of all reported crime without considering the seriousness or severity of the crime. However, the severity of crime provides a better indication of victimization rates and of individual and community wellbeing than the traditional crime rate. As the severity of crime increases, the risk of victimization and the negative impacts on health and wellbeing also increases.[2,3] When combined with additional knowledge about crime and justice, this information can help inform local initiatives that increase community safety and wellbeing by preventing and reducing crime. |
References
[1] Criminal Code, R.S.C., 1985, c. C-46.
[2] Hanson, R. F., Sawyer, G. K., Begle, A. M., & Huble, G. S. (2010). The Impact of Crime Victimization on Quality of Life. Journal of Trauma Stress, 23(2):189-197.
[3] Johnston, D, Shields, M. A., & Suziedelyte, A. (2018). Victimization, Wellbeing, and Compensation: Using Panel Data to Estimate the Costs of Violent Crime. The Economic Journal, 128(611):1545-1569.
[4] Clarke, A. E., D’Ambrosio, C., & Zhu, R. (2019). Crime Victimization Over Time and Sleep Quality. SSM – Population Health, 7(100401):1-7.
[5] Mahueteau, S., & Zhu, R. (2016). Crime Victimization and Subjective Wellbeing: Panel Evidence from Australia. Health Economics, 25(11):1448-1463.
[6] Bucerius, S. M., Jones, D. J., Kohl, A., & Haggerty, K. D. (2021). Addressing the Victim-Offender Overlap: Advancing Evidence-Based Research to Better Service Criminally Involved People with Victimization Histories. Victims & Offenders, 16(1):148–163.
[7] Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. (2020). Mental Health and Criminal Justice Policy Framework. Toronto: CAMH.
[8] Department of Justice. (2019). Spotlight on Gladue: Challenges, Experiences, and Possibilities in Canada’s Criminal Justice System. Canada: Government of Canada.
[9] Wolff, K. T., Cuevas, C., Intravia, J., Baglivio, M. T., & Epps, N. (2018). The Effects of Neighborhood Context on Exposure to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Among Adolescents Involved in the Juvenile Justice System: Latent Classes and Contextual Effects. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47(11):2279-2300.
[10] Owusu-Bempah, A., Jung, M., Sbai, F., Wilton, A. S., & Kouyoumdjian, F. (2021). Race and Incarceration: The Representation and Characteristics of Black People in Provincial Correctional Facilities in Ontario, Canada. Race and Justice, XX(X):1-13.
[11] Goodwill, A., & Giannone, Z. 2017. From Research to Practice: Bridging the Gaps for Psychologists Working in Indigenous Communities Affected by Gangs. Canadian Psychology, 58(4):345–353.
[12] Statistics Canada. (2016). List of crime severity indices. https://www23.statcan.gc.ca/imdb/p3VD.pl?Function=getVD&TVD=238787
[13] Statistics Canada. (2015). Section 1: The Crime Severity Index. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/85-004-x/2009001/part-partie1-eng.htm
[14] Hodgkinson, T. (2022). It’s Been a Long Time Running: New Understandings of Crime Severity and Specialization in Canada’s Longest Running Crime Capital, North Battleford. The Canadian Geographer, 66(2):293-306.