Dangerous places 2018

Photo: Nicholas Johansen

In Nov. 2017 Maclean's Magazine created quite a stir in the Okanagan when it released its rankings of "Most Dangerous Places In Canada." 

OVERALL/ALL CRIMES

• Vernon was ranked 9
• Penticton is 16
• Kamloops is 23
• Kelowna is 34

How is it possible that Vernon, Penticton, Kamloops and Kelowna all rank higher on the overall crime index than Vancouver (35), Calgary (93), Montreal (97), Toronto (123)?

"The report ranks communities according to the Crime Severity Index (CSI), a Statistics Canada measure of all police-reported crime, which takes into consideration both the volume and seriousness of offences. The 2016 data, the most current available, was released July 24, 2017," according to the Maclean's article. 

Maclean's Magazine has released some more stats — titled "Canada's Most Dangerous Places 2018." — this time with an "in-depth interactive tool."

It breaks down crimes into 14 categories and allows the user to find out where their community ranks in a specific category. 

• All Crime
• Violent Crime
• Homicide
• Sexual Assault
• Assault
• Firearms Offences
• Robbery
• Breaking & Entering
• Fraud
• Impaired Driving
• Cannabis Trafficking
• Cocaine Trafficking
• Other Drug Trafficking
• Youth Crime

For example:

For violent crimes Vernon ranked 29 in the country; Kamloops was ranked 34; Penticton 55; Kelowna 84.

However, West Kelowna, which has an overall ranking of 119 according to the CSI, is ranked number 15 in the homicide category; Kamloops is 22; Kelowna is 50; Penticton 221; Vernon 225.