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Research and Statistics
Victims of Crime Symposium
Ottawa
Susan McDonald
Department of Justice Canada
April 19, 2010
National Data on Victims of Crime
2 main sources of national data:
1) Police-reported data – Uniform
Crime Reporting Survey
2) Self-reported data – General Social
Survey on Victimization
UCR Data
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Police-reported data are a very reliable source for
measuring trends in serious crime, which have a
high likelihood of being reported to police.
The Uniform Crime Reporting Survey (UCR)
provides data on the number of criminal incidents
reported to police, the clearance status of those
incidents and information on persons charged.
There is some information on victims (age,
gender, relationship to accused).
Data from the UCR are reported on an annual
basis using administrative data sources provided
by police jurisdictions from across Canada.
UCR data
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Up to 2007, data have been
reported by all police across Canada
to the Aggregate Uniform Crime
Reporting Survey (UCR1).
Starting from 2008, data are based
on the Incident-Based Uniform
Crime Reporting Survey (UCR2).
UCR Data
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UCR 2.2 has 4 new variables:
 Organized
Crime/Gangs
 Cyber crime
 Hate Crime
 Geo-coding
General Social Survey Data
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Five cycles of data – 1988, 1993,
1999, 2004, 2009
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Population survey
provides an important complement
to officially recorded crime rates
 measures both crime incidents that
come to the attention of the police
and those that are unreported
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GSS Data
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Collects comprehensive
information on Canadians
 experiences
of victimization
 perceptions of crime and the
criminal justice system
 characteristics of the victim,
the incident and the perpetrator
GSS Data
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8 categories:
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Violent crime
Robbery
 Assault
 Sexual assault
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Non-violent crime
Theft of person property
 Motor vehicle/parts theft
 Break and enter
 Theft of household property
 Vandalism
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GSS Data
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Approx. 25,000 respondents
High response rate
Allows for estimates at the
provincial and rural levels and for
major Census Metropolitan Areas
(since 1999)
GSS Data
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Data from the 2004 GSS indicated
that 28% of Canadians 15 and older
reported being a victim of crime
during the past 12 months.
Respondents also reported that only
about 34% of criminal incidents
were actually reported to police.
2009 GSS
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New sections on Internet
victimization, cyber-bullying and
crime prevention
Face-to-face interviews in the North
to improve representativeness
Other Statistics Canada data sources
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Victim Services Survey
Transition Home Survey
Homicide Survey
Canadian Incidence Study of Reported
Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS)
Integrated Criminal Court Survey (ICCS)
International Crime Victimization Survey
(ICVS)
Canadian Census of Population
Government research
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Department of Justice Canada
http://www.justice.gc.ca/
Public Safety Canada
http://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/
National Parole Board http://www.npbcnlc.gc.ca/
Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime
http://www.victimsfirst.gc.ca/
Family Violence Clearinghouse
http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/ncfvcnivf/index-eng.php
Other data sources
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RCMP - Our Missing Children Annual
Reports
Provincial/territorial Child Abuse
Incidence Reports
Provincial/territorial Attorney
General/Public Safety Annual
Reports
Social Planning Council/ United Way
/ other agency reports
Questions?