Vancouver Crime Observatory

About & Methodology

About This Platform

Mission

The Vancouver Crime Observatory visualizes aggregated patterns of crime, justice-system effectiveness, and public spending over time and geography. Our goal is to provide fact-based transparency about crime patterns and system performance to inform public discourse and policy decisions.

Data Sources

  • Vancouver Police Department Open Data Portal
  • BC Court Services (public records)
  • Freedom of Information requests (anonymized aggregates)
  • City of Vancouver open datasets
  • Public charity and NGO funding records

Privacy & Limitations

What We Do

  • Aggregate all data by geographic grid cells (approximately 500m × 500m)
  • Aggregate all data by time periods (weekly or monthly)
  • Display only statistical patterns and trends
  • Validate all outputs to prevent individual identification

What We Do NOT Do

  • Store or display names, photos, addresses, or any personal identifiers
  • Track or profile specific individuals
  • Show exact incident locations (only aggregated grid cells)
  • Display individual case details or court records
  • Enable identification or targeting of any person

Technical Safeguards

  • Geographic precision limited to ~500m grid cells
  • Temporal precision limited to daily/weekly aggregation
  • Automated privacy validation on all API responses
  • No storage of individual identifiers in database
  • Regular audits to ensure no re-identification is possible

Methodology

Data Processing

  1. Raw incident data is collected from public sources
  2. All personal identifiers are removed or never collected
  3. Incidents are assigned to geographic grid cells (spatial aggregation)
  4. Incidents are grouped by time periods (temporal aggregation)
  5. Statistical metrics are computed for each grid cell and time period
  6. Results are validated to ensure no individual-level data remains

Crime Categories

  • Violent: Assault, robbery, homicide, weapons offenses
  • Property: Theft, break and enter, mischief, arson, vehicle theft
  • Drug: Possession, trafficking, production
  • Other: Fraud, trespass, bylaw violations, disturbances

System Churn Metrics

Release-to-Recontact Rate

The percentage of releases (bail, probation, etc.) that resulted in a subsequent arrest within the observation period. This is calculated as an aggregate statistic by area, not by tracking individuals.

Bail Violation Rate

The percentage of bail releases that resulted in a breach of conditions. Calculated from anonymized, aggregated data provided through FOI requests.

Stayed Charge Rate

The percentage of charges that were stayed or dismissed by prosecutors or courts, rather than proceeding to conviction or acquittal.

Average Time to Recontact

The average number of days between a release and a subsequent arrest, calculated as an aggregate statistic across all incidents in an area.

Important Note on Interpretation

This platform presents factual, aggregated statistics. High numbers in certain areas may reflect:

  • Differences in policing practices and resource allocation
  • Socioeconomic factors and population density
  • Availability of services and support systems
  • Reporting patterns and community engagement with law enforcement

Correlation does not imply causation. This data is intended to inform discussion, not to stigmatize communities or individuals.

Legal & Ethical Framework

  • All data collection and processing complies with Canadian privacy law (PIPEDA)
  • Only publicly available or FOI-accessible data is used
  • Platform design prevents misuse for harassment or targeting
  • Regular privacy audits and validation
  • Commitment to neutral, fact-based presentation

Contact & Feedback

This is an open-source civic transparency project. If you have questions, concerns, or suggestions:

  • Report privacy concerns immediately via our issue tracker
  • Suggest new data sources or metrics
  • Contribute to the codebase (GitHub repository)
  • Request corrections to data or methodology

Last Updated: January 2025
Version: 1.0.0 (MVP)
License: Open source under MIT License