Feb. 18, 2021 – Crime statistics are down, but tensions are high in Oro-Medonte, Ont.
The release of a fourth-quarter police report presented to Oro-Medonte council on Feb. 10 shows a marked decrease in assaults and property theft at the end of 2020.
But the news is not all good, noted Insp. Veronica Eaton of the Orillia Ontario Provincial Police (OPP). Eaton said police are dealing with more family violence during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have noticed an increase in disturbances, such as familial arguments, familial disputes, people arguing,” Eaton said. “Tensions or anxiety is higher than normal.”
Violent crime is down by 14 per cent, however, there were 35 domestic violence instances with nine criminal charges laid. The remaining 26 domestics were non-criminal in nature, she said.
The new Crisis Outreach and Support Team (COAST) has been activated to include several police officers and a Canadian mental health worker to assist in community-based non-violent calls.
“We’re dealing with issues—not necessarily traditional police issues—such as substance abuse and mental health calls,” Eaton said.
Oro-Medonte also saw a 31 per cent drop in injury-related collisions, and there were no automobile fatalities reported during the last quarter of 2020.
There were 309 provincial offences charges laid, with most factors attributed to speeding or loss of control during inclement weather.
There were 62 RIDE events and eight impaired charges laid.
There were also five theft-over-$5,000 charges, including an automobile and a snowmobile that were recovered with charges laid.
There is a new Collision Reporting Centre (CRC) for noninjurious collisions at the Orillia detachment of the OPP, located at 1 University Ave. in Orillia, Ont.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.
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