BC had the largest decline in crime rates and crime severity of all provinces and territories, according to a Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics (CCJS) report on incidents of police-reported crime in 2009.And the province acknowledges that continued targeted policing is still needed in communities where combating gangs and guns remains a priority, Solicitor General Mike de Jong said."In almost every corner of the province we're seeing the number of crimes (down six percent) and their severity (down nine percent)decline, demonstrating that integrated policing strategies andadditional dedicated investigative and prosecutorial resources isworking to make communities safer," said Mr. de Jong."Building on the Premier's seven-point plan to tackle gang crime, the province strengthened integrated policing and prosecution resources to build iron-clad cases resulting in more guilty pleas and more convictions. We've seen success already this year," said Mr. de Jong. "The record-low homicide numbers in Vancouver are being reinforced with a greater number of gangsters behind bars. Of six homicides in the city so far this year charges, have been laid in four of them, compared to last year's 20 murders with charges laid in just four cases."Other important safety and security indicators from the CCJS report demonstrate that:* Violent crime - including homicides - declined one per cent in BC, the same as the national trend.* B.C. property crime rates dropped nine per cent, compared to national declines of five per cent.* Other Criminal Code traffic violations are down 10 per cent, while impaired is up by 18 per cent, bringing an overall rise to the rate of Criminal Code traffic violations of 11 per cent. This reflects a national increase and proactive targeting of these offences.