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th ei fp .c a Th e IF P -H al to n H ill s | T hu rs da y, A pr il 22 ,2 02 1 | 4 FULL-SERVICE RETIREMENT HOME Located on the cusp of the Hamlet of Glen Williams 222 Mountainview Road North, Georgetown 905-877-1800 www.mountainviewresidence.com Mountainview Residence by the Glen The only family owned & operated retirement home in Halton Hills. On-site activities to foster social, emotional, physical and mental wellbeing. Mountainview Residents are fully vaccinated, all are in good spirits We are growing with our community. Come see our new designs starting summer 2021! You've worked hard to enjoy retirement, now it's our pleasure to make this the best time of your life in a family, friendly atmosphere. Our residents enjoy social meals (variety of food choices), along with discrete personal care services to support daily well being. ARMY CADETS is a free program for young men and women 12-18. For more information visit Georgetownarmycadets.ca 676 Lorne Scots Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps would like to extend a heartfelt to our volunteers Thank You The COVID-19 pandem- ic and its related lock- downs changed a lot in Hal- ton in 2020, including the number of crimes taking place. Here's eight significant changes in 2020 crime sta- tistics Halton police re- ported during the Thurs- day, March 25, meeting of the police board. • There were 2,321 fewer criminal offences reported in Halton in 2020 (9,853) compared to 2019 (12,174). This works out to a decrease of 20.9 per cent when region- al population growth is tak- en into account. • There were 2,160 inci- dents of violent crime (e.g., assaults, robberies, at- tempted murders) com- pared to 2,150 in 2019. This actually works out to a de- crease of 1.8 per cent when population change is taken into account. Police said these crimes accounted for 21.9 per cent of all criminal offences in Halton in 2020, which is up from 17.7 per cent in 2019. • There was a 20.4 per cent drop in property crime (e.g., break-ins, theft) from 8,150 incidents in 2019 to 6,490 in 2020. • Other crimes (e.g., dis- turbing the peace, bail vio- lations, prostitution) dropped by 35.8 per cent from 1,874 incidents in 2019 to 1,203 in 2020. • Motor vehicle collision were 39.1 per cent lower in Halton during 2020 com- pared to 2019, down from 10,129 to 6,170. Property damage colli- sions were down from 9,098 to 5,498 (-39.6 per cent). Col- lisions involving injuries were down 35 per cent in 2020, dropping from 1,021 to 664 while fatal collisions decreased from 10 in 2019 to eight in 2020. • Impaired driving ap- prehensions were down 2.5 per cent from 448 incidents in 2019 to 437 in 2020. • Not all the crime stats went down in 2020. Milton and Halton Hills had more auto thefts (84 in 2020 com- pared to 76 in 2019) and more impaired driving ap- prehensions (85 in 2020 compared to 80 in 2019). Burlington had more as- saults (212 in 2020 com- pared to 204 in 2019) and overall a higher amount of violent crime (391 incidents in 2020 compared to 359 in 2019). • The crime clearance rate in Halton was 52.1 per cent in 2020, up from 51 per cent in 2019. NEWS 8 WAYS CRIME IN HALTON CHANGED IN 2020 DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com Halton police are reas- suring the public that offi- cers will not be conducting random stops of vehicles or individuals during the province's six-week stay- at-home order. POLICE WON'T CONDUCT RANDOM STOPS Police say at this time, despite enhanced enforce- ment measures given them by the government under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act, they will continue to engage, ex- plain, educate and enforce while working with mu- nicipal bylaw officers and public health to respond to complaints. "Our focus will remain on education and using en- forcement only as a last re- sort," stated a HRPS press release issued Saturday (April 17). The new regulations are currently being reviewed by the force. "It is my hope and expec- tation that our officers will not be put in the position of having to use enforcement as a mechanism to achieve what should occur through voluntary compliance," said Halton police chief Stephen Tanner. "We will not be stopping vehicles or individuals randomly but will respond as required and when nec- essary. "It is my hope that our citizens will continue to work co-operatively with us and with all levels of government throughout the weeks and months ahead." SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT THEIFP.CA The clearance rate is the percentage of the total num- ber of crimes that occur which are solved (cleared). Halton police's clear- ance rate in 2019 was the highest of the 'Big 12' police services in Ontario which includes police services from Toronto, London, Ot- tawa, Hamilton, Waterloo, Niagara, Windsor, Sud- bury and Durham. Compa- rable data for 2020 is not available at this time.