Crime & Disorder near the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre’s Supervised Consumption Services (SCS) Facility 2019 Statistical Overview: Second Quarter

Embargoed from release until August 9, 2019

8/6/2019 Police Service Crime & Disorder near the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre’s Supervised Consumption Services (SCS) Facility

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Calgary Police Service supports the medically endorsed, evidence-based spectrum of treatment and services designed to serve the needs of those with addiction-related issues, and the communities of which they are a part. The Service recognizes that supervised consumption sites are one piece of a broader set of programs, policies, and practices that fall under the umbrella of harm reduction.

On January 29, 2019, the Calgary Police Service released the report “Crime & Disorder near the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre’s Supervised Consumption Services (SCS) Facility: 2018 Statistical Overview” which showed an increase in crime and disorder within the area over the three-year average. Since that report, the CPS has made concerted efforts to address crime and disorder issues while continuing to be actively engaged with community and agency partners.

The purpose of this report is to provide a statistical overview of reported crime1 and disorder2 for the 2nd quarter (Q2) of 2019 in the 250m study area around the SCS. The analysis includes a comparison of the study area to the Centre City3 and the rest of the city, and a timeline from April 2018 to June 2019. This report should not be used in comparison to the previously released report as the data is cumulative and includes late reporting.

Significant police presence has been maintained over Q2, and public and officer generated calls continue to increase (Graph 1). Further analysis has shown that there is a strong relationship between the increased number of unique SCS users4 and both public and officer-generated calls for service (CFS) (Graph 2). It is expected that as new users to the site increase both types of CFS will also increase.

1 Crime includes: Non-Domestic Violence, Break and Enters, Stolen Autos & Theft from Vehicles 2 Disorder includes: Intoxicated person, Disturbance, Indecent Act, Juvenile Complaint, Landlord/Tenant, Mental Health Concern, Neighbour Dispute, Party Complaint, Prowler, Suspicious Person, Threats, Drugs, Noise Complaint, Possible Gunshots, Unwanted Guest, Prostitution, Speeder, Suspicious Auto, Fire, Property Damage, & Abandoned Auto 3 Centre City: Communities of Beltline, Chinatown, Downtown Commercial Core, Downtown East Village, Downtown West End, & Eau Claire. 4 Safeworks Monthly Report – June 2019: Supervised Consumption Services, Health Services

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Graph 1: Overall Trending Crime, Disorder and Police Generated Calls for Service

Graph 2: Comparison of SCS Unique Users and Calls for Service (Public and Officer Generated)

Findings also show that percent changes in the study area differ from the Centre City and the rest of Calgary. It is important to note that the volume of occurrences is low in the study area and that any change generates large percentage impacts. The Q2 statistics for the 250m study area show the following:

• Increase of 252 calls (40%) in publicly generated CFS when compared to the 3-year Q2 average; • Increase of 80 calls (75%) in CFS to the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre compared to the 3-year Q2 average;

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• Increase of 96 calls (34%) in disorder CFS when compared to the 3-year Q2 average; • Increase of 21 calls (146%) in drug-related CFS when compared to the 3-year Q2 average; • Increase of 1 incident (8%) of violence. A review of all incidents shows a shift from Q1 2019 violence, where most Q2 incidents were assaults with weapons against Sheldon M. Chumir staff and victims immediately outside of the facility. The level of violence has also increased as bear spray, bats, pipes and knives were used; • Decrease of 4 incidents (82%) in break and enter incidents when compared to the 3-year Q2 average. A review of all incidents shows a shift from Q1, where Q2 incidents shows a pattern of almost all incidents relating to secure parkades involving either car prowlings or thefts from storage lockers; • Increase of 7 incidents (33%) in vehicle crime incidents when compared to the 3-year Q2 average. A review of the incidents shows most of these incidents were car prowlings where small items were stolen (acquisitive crime) and limited incidents of vehicle thefts and stolen license plates; • Increase of 725 calls (452%) in police-generated CFS; and, • In Q2 police officers continued to proactively patrol the area logging approximately 2,400 hours.

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Crime & Disorder near the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre’s Supervised Consumption Services (SCS) Facility

BACKGROUND The Supervised Consumption Services (SCS) facility is located within the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre. The SCS began operations on October 30, 2017, and since April 30, 2018, has offered services 24 hours, 7 days a week. From October 30, 2017 to June 30, 2019, the SCS had 87,790 client visits5. The most common drug reported for use during visits to the SCS continues to remain crystal methamphetamine (meth) followed by fentanyl.

Consistent with usage in the SCS, meth continues to be the most common drug seized by police in Calgary6.

METHODOLOGY7 This report focuses on a 250m study area around the SCS and includes CPS data from the dispatch (calls for service) and record management (crime reports) systems. RMS occurrences and calls for service includes data from January 1st, 2015 to June 30th, 2019. The 250m study area was considered a suitable size to control for diffusion of downtown activity unrelated to the safe consumption site being unnecessarily captured within the analysis.

5 Safeworks Monthly Report – June 2019: Supervised Consumption Services, Alberta Health Services 6 Operations across the city targeting drug houses and trafficking impacted our seizure numbers. 7 Only calls for service and Sentry reports with valid xy coordinates were included in this analysis. Web calls are excluded from Disorder and CFS analysis. The 250 metre buffer area was calculated from the xy coordinates of the Sheldon Chumir Health Centre. Location of Interest (LOI) searched for address & common place name permutations of 1213 4 ST & Sheldon Chumir. CAD calls include dispatched addresses and do not necessarily reflect where the incident occurred (for example, incidents that are reported at hospitals but occurred elsewhere). Disorder calls represent a portion of total public-generated call volume.

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PUBLIC-GENERATED CALLS FOR SERVICE There were 883 publicly generated calls for service (CFS) in the study area in Q2, roughly 252 calls (+40%) above the three-year average. The highest volume call types included unwanted guests, suspicious persons, and check on welfare; these types of CFS have not changed across all quarters. An increase of 461 calls was observed in the Centre City (+4%) and the rest of the city recorded approximately a 2% drop from the 3-year average.

Public-Generated Calls for Service Q2 Q2 3YR DIFF %DIFF 2019 AVG AVG AVG 250m Study Area 883 631 252 40% Centre City 11570 11109 461 4% Rest of City 89826 91228 -1402 -2%

CALLS FOR SERVICE at the SHELDON M. CHUMIR HEALTH CENTRE8 In the second quarter of 2019, there were 186 public-generated calls for service (CFS) to the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre, 80 calls above the three-year average of 106. Check on welfare, unwanted guests, suspicious persons, and disturbance were the highest volume call types accounting for over a third of all public-generated calls.

Approximately two thirds of the public-generated calls in Q2 were generated by Alberta Health Services staff or security.

8 Location of Interest (LOI) searched for address & common place name permutations of 1213 4 ST & Sheldon Chumir

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DISORDER Disorder events in the study area increased 34% when compared to the three-year average for the second quarter of the year. Suspicious person, unwanted guest, drugs, and suspicious vehicle calls registered the largest increases from average during the second quarter and account for almost 80% of total disorder in the study area. The highest volume of disorder activity occurred in June.

In comparison, the rest of the Centre City’s disorder volume increased 12% while the rest of the city saw a 1% increase.

DISORDER Q2 Q2 3YR DIFF %DIFF 2019 AVG AVG AVG 250m Study Area 383 287 96 34% Centre City 4119 3691 428 12% Rest of City 22239 21958 281 1%

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DRUGS9 In the second quarter of 2019, there were 36 public generated drug calls for service, 21 calls above average in the study area. These calls consisted primarily of drug use/possession complaints.

The Centre City and the remainder of the city recorded 6% and 21% reductions in public- generated drug calls in the second quarter of 2019.

DRUGS Q2 Q2 3YR DIFF %DIFF 2019 AVG AVG AVG 250m Study Area 36 15 21 146% Centre City 136 145 -9 -6% Rest of City 538 676 -138 -21%

VIOLENCE10 There were 13 violent occurrences in the study area during the 2nd Quarter, one occurrence above the 3-year average. A review indicates that although most incidents were directly related to the Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre, most of these incidents were assault with weapons against staff and immediately in the immediate vicinity of the facility. Weapons included bear spray, pipe, bat, and knives. The Centre City saw an average volume of violent activity while the rest of the City saw a 7% increase.

VIOLENCE Q2 Q2 3YR DIFF %DIFF 2019 AVG AVG AVG 250m Study Area 13 12 1 8% Centre City 247 244 3 1% Rest of City 1191 1118 73 7%

9 Drugs includes: Use, Possession, Trafficking, and Found Drugs (excluding mandatory Health reporting to police of drugs found within the SCS facility). 10 Violence does not include domestic violence. Monthly 3YR AVG in bar graph calculated from previous three years of monthly data. Note-smaller values may produce large percentage changes therefore it’s important to consider absolute change as well.

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BREAK & ENTERS11 Break and Enters within the Study Area showed a decrease of four occurrences compared to the three-year average. In contrast the Centre City registered an increase of 81 incidents, up 52% from average during the 2nd Quarter of 2019. The Rest of City recorded only a slight increase of 4%. A review of the occurrences within the study area show that most of these crimes are entries into secure parkades with subsequent thefts from storage lockers and vehicles – all generally associated with acquisitive crime.

BREAK & ENTERS Q2 Q2 3YR DIFF %DIFF 2019 AVG AVG AVG 250m Study Area 11 15 -4 -25% Centre City 237 156 81 52% Rest of City 2220 2128 92 4%

11 Break & Enters include: Residential, Commercial, Detached Garages, and Secured Parkades. Note-smaller values may produce large percentage changes therefore it’s important to consider absolute change as well.

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VEHICLE CRIME12 There were 19 vehicle crime occurrences in the study area during Q2, seven occurrences above average (+54%). The Centre City recorded an increase of 85% with 237 additional occurrences over average. During the same period, the rest of the city registered a 2% increase compared to average. A review of the incidents shows most of these incidents were car prowlings where small items were stolen (acquisitive crime) and limited incidents of vehicle thefts and stolen license plates;

VEHICLE CRIME Q2 Q2 3YR DIFF %DIFF 2019 AVG AVG AVG 250m Study Area 19 12 7 54% Centre City 517 280 237 85% Rest of City 4385 4292 93 2%

12 Vehicle Crime includes: Theft from Vehicles (car prowlings) and Theft of Vehicles. Note-smaller values may produce large percentage changes therefore it’s important to consider absolute change as well.

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POLICE-GENERATED CALLS FOR SERVICE Police-generated CFS are included here as an indicator of the police efforts to engage the community and address the crime and disorder concerns.

Since Q3 2018, there have been concerted efforts to create a significant proactive police presence in all Centre City communities, with special attention given to the SCS area. Pro-active police work includes increased beat officer patrols, increased mountain bike officer patrols, scheduled Mobile Community Outreach Police Station (MCOPS) presence and patrols, and focused drug trafficking enforcement. While community engagement and feedback has been very positive, there are significant challenges for police to maintain this increased level of presence with current resources.

In Q2, police conducted almost 2,400 hours of proactive time in the study area.

POLICE GENERATED CFS Q2 Q2 3YR DIFF %DIFF 2019 AVG AVG AVG 250m Study Area 885 160 725 452% Centre City 4740 3539 1221 35% Rest of City 30478 33382 -2904 -9%

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SCS Site Usage13 The monthly Safeworks reports have shown a sustained increase in the number of unique users to their site since opening. The following graph compares unique user data to public and police generated CFS. The results show a strong relationship between the two14; however, this does not demonstrate causation. Since opening demand for services at the SCS has continued to steadily increase and it is expected that if this trend continues CFS will also continue to increase. For context, for every 2 unique users there is a corresponding increase of 1 CFS.

13 Safeworks Monthly Reports: Supervised Consumption Services, Alberta Health Services 14 Statistical correlation shows a strong relationship (R-squared = 0.80)

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Appendix Q2 Comparison 2016 by Quarter Total 2017 by Quarter Total 2018 by Quarter Total 2019 by Quarter Total (2016:2018) # PUBLIC-GENERATED CFS Q2 DIFF % DIFF AVG 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 AVG AVG

Study Area 433 529 675 469 2106 501 654 693 496 2344 454 711 746 701 2612 694 883 1577 631 252 39.9%

Centre City 11040 10905 11136 9855 42936 9780 10909 11541 10962 43192 10527 11513 11572 10311 43923 10228 11570 21798 11109 461 4.1% - Rest Of City 83062 89814 90518 83343 346737 80525 90621 93849 88249 353244 86404 93249 94188 85170 359011 81683 89826 171509 91228 1402 -1.5%

DISORDER

Study Area 204 226 328 230 988 243 303 301 220 1067 190 331 318 304 1143 287 383 670 287 96 33.6%

Centre City 3771 3553 3705 3390 14419 3264 3642 3718 3844 14468 3548 3879 3834 3450 14711 3390 4119 7509 3691 428 11.6%

Rest Of City 18287 21718 23055 18319 81379 17031 22304 23362 18682 81379 16880 21852 23218 18527 80477 17147 22239 39386 21958 281 1.3%

DRUG CFS

Study Area 4 8 6 4 22 5 9 9 5 28 4 27 22 20 73 15 36 51 15 21 145.5%

Centre City 114 111 126 93 444 67 135 175 133 510 132 189 176 108 605 85 136 221 145 -9 -6.2%

Rest Of City 556 705 717 470 2448 483 662 674 477 2296 492 662 601 424 2179 430 538 968 676 -138 -20.5%

VIOLENCE

Study Area 3 7 18 8 36 4 16 16 13 49 7 13 15 22 57 7 13 21 12 2 18.3%

Centre City 205 215 193 148 761 171 225 256 230 882 202 292 319 260 1073 241 247 488 244 3 1.2% Rest Of City 957 964 972 973 3866 1034 1055 1147 1115 4351 1096 1336 1219 1279 4930 1197 1191 2388 1118 73 6.5%

BREAK & ENTER

Study Area 8 7 6 4 25 11 24 18 12 65 15 13 21 16 65 21 11 32 15 -4 -25.0%

Centre City 119 97 117 106 439 172 172 188 238 770 198 199 217 207 821 295 237 532 156 81 51.9%

Rest Of City 1891 2019 2051 1895 7856 1608 2132 2011 2402 8153 1878 2232 2669 2174 8953 2048 2220 4268 2128 92 4.3%

VEHICLE CRIME

Study Area 14 14 18 13 59 6 8 11 12 37 7 15 25 28 75 11 19 30 12 7 54.1%

Centre City 293 302 349 286 1230 236 266 251 269 1022 184 272 360 293 1109 359 517 876 280 237 84.6%

Rest Of City 3952 4094 4493 4625 17164 3896 4719 4858 4725 18198 3882 4062 5189 4339 17472 3666 4385 8051 4292 93 2.2%

POLICE-GENERATED CFS

Study Area 130 153 158 137 578 101 135 217 132 585 122 193 294 264 873 518 885 1403 160 725 452.0%

Centre City 3268 3248 3483 2886 12885 2917 3330 3291 3427 12965 3751 4040 4819 3740 16350 4493 4760 9253 3539 1221 34.5% - Rest Of City 32478 31725 31319 30022 125544 32557 32457 31412 32732 129158 35636 35963 32963 32047 136609 31525 30478 62003 33382 2904 -8.7%