Murray Wood: Drought or deluge, it's Saskatchewan weather
Murray Wood notes that while we have seen years with "perfect" weather in the province, they aren't that commo...
Saskatoon police laid the 9th homicide charge of 2019 on Thursday.
That number is now 4 away from 2018’s record high of 13 homicides. That included 4 charges of manslaughter that were a result of fentanyl overdoses.
Rick Ruddell is a professor of justice studies at the University of Regina and the Law Foundation of Saskatchewan’s chair in police studies.
He says the majority of murder cases can be traced back to other crimes.
“Being involved in the sex trade, being involved in the drug trade… these things really increase the risk of victimization.”
He also said there are other factors that can cause murder numbers to fluctuate.
“That could be a matter of increased involvement in crime, or it could also just be a matter of luck… sometimes, people who are very gravely injured get immediate medical care and survive their injuries,” he said.
“But sometimes people die in these events, just because of the medical care that’s available.”
He thinks the best way to reduce these deaths is to double down on current crime prevention tactics.
“(The Saskatoon police) are actively working (on) gang management strategies, they’re trying to reduce crime like these serious violent acts,” he said.
“They tend to do a very professional job.”
Many of this year’s murders happened during an increase in crime in Pleasant Hill this summer.
