Earlier today at the Board of Police Commissioners’ monthly meeting, Chief Frank Beazley of Halifax Regional Police and Superintendent Darrell Beaton, Officer in charge of RCMP Halifax District, presented the 2009 year-end crime statistics.

While the overall crime rate has held relatively steady, both violent crime and property crime have increased slightly.

Compared with 2008, overall violent crime in 2009 is up 1%, with homicides increasing by four cases for a total of eleven; attempt homicides increasing by four incidents for a total of 26; a slight increase in assaults and a slight decrease in robberies.

Property crime figures are up 6% overall, including increases in theft and break and enters, and a decrease in thefts from motor vehicles.

HRM Partners in Policing recognize that crime is cyclical and we expect to see fluctuations in the crime rate.

Each of the previous four years saw decreases in our overall crime rates while the 2009 rate hit a plateau, with increases in some categories and decreases in others.

The increases concern us, and we remain committed to our crime reduction strategy which puts officers in closer contact with the communities we serve across HRM and swiftly addresses crime hot spots.

We are confident we are on the right track and utilizing the right combination of enforcement and outreach to suppress and address crime and disorder in our community.