IT'S A MEANER CITY, CRIME SNAPSHOT SHOWS VIOLENCE ON THE INCREASE LAST YEAR

Toronto is a meaner city today.

Violent crime is up. Youth crime is up - especially among young women.
Youth gangs are proving a challenge for police.

And violence involving spouses and family members continues to rise.

That grim picture is painted in two key reports to be received by the
Toronto Police Services Board this month.

But the data in the police reports, which provide snapshots of crime in the
city and the force's ability to handle it, also show some hopeful trends:
crime over-all is down and people in Toronto still feel safe.

The documents serve as a performance report card on Toronto police and an
in-depth analysis of crime in the year 2000. They also reveal:

From 1999, violent crime was up by 8.2 per cent in Toronto.

There was a 16.7 per cent jump in violent crimes committed by females aged
12 to 17, and a 13.4 per cent increase in violent crimes committed by women
18 and older.

Over-all, youth crime has risen by 4.4 per cent. A total of 7,938 youths
were charged with Criminal Code offences, 2,488 of which were considered
violent - charges such as assault, sexual assault and robbery.

Violence in the home remains a worrisome trend and police are increasingly
arresting repeat offenders. Last year, 5,946 charges were laid against
family members involved in violent incidents, compared to 4,721 in 1999. In
1996, by comparison, police laid 4,727 charges.

Last year, 945 of those arrested for family violence were known repeat
offenders, up from 684 in 1999.

The reports also focus on a number of other areas.

Schools

Although youth crime is on the rise in Toronto, there has been a decline in
over-all crime on school property over the past five years. The proportion
of those crimes which are violent, however, increased last year.

Toronto students and school administrators who took part in two,
small-sample Toronto police surveys last year felt school was a safe place
to be. At least during the day.

In December, 2000, the force distributed 725 surveys to 145 city high
schools. Only 341 surveys were returned completed. Of those students,
nearly 9 in 10 indicated they felt very safe or reasonably safe at their
schools during daytime hours.

The students identified drugs and prostitution, youth gangs and vandalism
as the most serious policing problems in and around their schools.

While nearly three-quarters of students who responded said they would feel
comfortable talking to police about crime and other problems in their
schools, two-thirds indicated that, in general, relations between police
and students in their schools was fair or poor.

In a survey of elementary and high school administrators, also conducted
last December, 365 questionnaires were sent out. Only 223 were completed.

The administrators also felt safe in their schools, but they identified
policing concerns similar to those in the student survey.

Drugs: Police were busy picking up Toronto's youth on drug charges.

Last year, 550 drug-related charges were laid against youths, up
considerably from 1999, and more than double the 269 drug-related charges
laid in 1996.

The reason for the increase is not indicated in the police reports, but it
is noted that the number of drug charges can be ``greatly influenced by
police enforcement policies and practices.''

In fact, both nationwide and in Toronto, the number of over-all drug
charges laid last year - and the number of people charged - rose, in
keeping with an upward trend seen in recent years.

Last year in Toronto, 4,120 people were charged with 10,558 drug-related
offences. In 1996, 2,448 people faced 5,986 charges.

Toronto police note that cannabis-related charges continue to be the most
common drug offence.

Young men are the most likely to be arrested.

Organized Crime:

Just how the force dealt with youth gangs and other organized criminal
groups was not as easy to measure.

There were much-publicized campaigns, such as one aimed at eradicating
graffiti, a slew of gang-related homicides, many of which remain unsolved,
and police requests for more funding to help fight organized crime groups.

Earlier this year, police Chief Julian Fantino asked the city for an extra
$715,000 to pay for a special anti-gang unit. He didn't get it.

In one of the reports before the police board today is a wish list from
specialized detective squads that deal with organized crime, including the
need for additional staffing, more funding for training and more
sophisticated investigative tools.

Traffic:

Last year was also the year of the targeted traffic blitz - and traffic ticket.

The force conducted more than a dozen, high-profile traffic campaigns in
the city, cracking down on everything from red-light runners and motorists
who obstruct streetcars to impatient rush-hour drivers and construction
zone speeders.

The result: About 50,000 tickets handed out to motorists.

Perceptions Of Safety:

Torontonians still feel safe in their city but not as secure as they did
two years ago, despite another drop in over-all crime, according to a poll
of 1,200 residents commissioned by the force.

Of 1,200 residents surveyed by the force in December, 1999, 9 out of 10
said they felt safe.

Last year, only 7 in 10 felt the same.

The proportion of respondents who felt their neighbourhoods had high levels
of crime increased from 9 per cent in 1999 to 14 per cent in 2000.

Victimization:

There may be a decline in the crime rate, but Toronto police reports show
there are more victims of crime.

In the year 2000, the number of people who were victims of violent crime -
homicides, sexual assaults, robbery and assault - grew. In 1999, 31,865
people were victims of crime; last year, 34,783 people were victimized, an
increase of 9.2 per cent.

Generally, men are more likely to become the victims of violent crime than
women. Males are usually the victims of homicides, assaults and robberies.

But women are far more likely to be sexually assaulted than men, the report
shows.

And while the greatest number of victims fall in the 20- to 29-year-old age
range, the report states that when population is taken into account, youths
aged 10 to 19 are the most likely to be victimized.

Seniors and children under the age of 10 are most likely to escape being
the victims of violent crime, the report states.