LaSalle police Constable Terry Seguin admitted it is a little disappointing, but thanks to a government goof, his town is not the safest community in Canada after all.
Statistics Canada released the results of the crime severity index earlier this week, and the numbers gave LaSalle top billing.
Unfortunately, it was discovered later that StatsCan had made an error in reporting the numbers. Seguin told BlackburnNewsWindsor.com that the LaSalle Police Service contacted StatsCan, and they admitted a mistake occurred.
"We have an obligation to our citizens to remain open, honest, and fair," said Seguin Friday. "We went to Stats Canada and said -- hey, we have to have this corrected because we have to protect our integrity."
Police services send regular statistics to Stats Canada. At the end of the fiscal year, it submits in any revisions.
The crime severity index measures the volume of crime, but also how serious the crimes. It looks at violent and non-violent crimes.
The higher in the index the community is ranked, the safer it is considered in that year.
LaSalle had a score of 321 out of 321 communities, but after police followed up with StatsCan, the correction showed its rating changed to 312; the ninth safest in Canada.
Petawawa had the best score instead.
"This is a situation where we were given an accolade, and because of where we have landed in the past it wasn't really outlandish to believe that we could be number one," Seguin said. "We did the honest thing. We asked for confirmation. We asked for a review."
Seguin said residents can still rest assured their community is safe. He pointed out LaSalle has consistently scored in the top ten over many years, and that crime still fell three per cent last year from 2017. He assures residents that the data the department submitted, and later re-reported by StatsCan, is completely accurate.
"I still stand by the statements that I made," he added. "What a great community we have; what great partnerships we have."