HISTORY OF CRIMINAL LAW IN CANADA

CRIMINAL LAW  Criminal law, in its widest sense, includes substantive criminal law, the operation of penal institutions, CRIMINAL PROCEDURE and evidence, and POLICE investigations (see CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION). More precisely, the term refers to substantive criminal law - a body of law that prohibits certain kinds of conduct and imposes sanctions for unlawful behaviour.CRIMINAL PROCEDURE POLICECRIMINAL INVESTIGATION  Underlying the various theories explaining the purpose of criminal law is the basic premise that criminal law is a means by which society reaffirms its values and denounces violators. A change in values entails a change in the types of conduct society wishes to prohibit.  The sources of substantive criminal law in Canada are limited. Most offences are created by the Criminal Code, which prohibits conviction of an offence at COMMON LAW (except for the offence of contempt of court). Criminal offences are also contained in other related federal statutes, such as the Narcotic Control Act, the Food and Drugs Act, and the Young Offenders Act. COMMON LAW

CRIME RATE FALLS TO LOWEST LEVEL SINCE 1973  Canada's crime rate is the lowest in nearly 40 years, according to Statistics Canada, as the volume of crime dropped five per cent in 2010 from the year before.  "The national crime rate has been falling steadily for the past 20 years and is now at its lowest level since 1973," Statistics Canada reported.  The agency said that Canadian police services reported nearly 2.1 million Criminal Code incidents in 2010, about 77,000 fewer than in The police-reported crime rate measures the overall volume of crime.  The Crime Severity Index, which measures the severity of crime, also fell six per cent and reached its lowest point (82.7) since Police reported just over 437,000 violent incidents in 2010, about 7,200 fewer than in the previous year.

CRIME & STATISTIC RATES IN CANADA Map of violent crime rates across Canada, per 100, per 100, per 100, per 100, per 100, per 100,000 > 5000 per 100,000 There were 2,452,787 crimes reported in 2006; 48% were property related crimes and 12.6% were violent crimes. At a rate of 7,518 reported incidents per 100,000 people, the crime rate in 2006, the latest year for which there is statistics, was the lowest crime rate in twenty-five years. [1] The crime rate has been in general decline since [1]