COVID-19 has brought some unusual changes in criminal behaviour

Some trends predictable, while others have officer scratching their heads

COVID-19 has changed both criminal behaviour and policing in Ontario.

Some of the crime trends, such as a surge in domestic violence, have been predictable. Others, such as a spike in car thefts, have perplexed officers.

Both trends have been seen by York Regional Police. The force, which has jurisdiction north of Toronto, crunched some numbers comparing this March to last year’s.

Impaired driving is down 29 per cent in the region. York police had long tried various measures to curb the problem, especially after Marco Muzzo drove drunk in September 2015 and killed four members of the Neville-Lake family, including three young children.

Emotional campaigns pleading with drivers to avoid drinking and driving and then naming and shaming drunk drivers didn’t put a dent in the numbers.

But COVID-19 did. “Thankfully impaired driving charges are down — likely just because people aren’t out at bars and clubs socializing with friends as much as they had previously been,” said Sgt. Andy Pattenden.

Domestic violence was up 22 per cent in the region last month, compared to April 2019.

“We believe it’s purely from the number of people home and in tight quarters and a real change in everyday routines and some people clearly aren’t managing it well,” Pattenden said.

Pattenden could not explain why car thefts were up 44 per cent. But a 45 per cent jump in commercial break-and-enters was perfectly predictable.

“We figured we’d see that,” Pattenden said. “Businesses are closed and we have a lot of industrial parks in York Region — those areas are

The force has stepped up patrols in response, including redeploying its helicopter to cover those areas more than usual, he said.

In Toronto, crime is down across the board, except for homicides, which remain stable, and domestic violence, which has seen a slight uptick.

“Assaults, robberies, shootings are all down,” spokeswoman Meaghan Gray said.

Provincial police say it’s too early to see any big trends, but major crimes haven’t really changed.

“Criminals will be criminals,” Staff Sgt. Carolle Dionne said. relatively unoccupied.”