Crime rates in Canada are much lower than in the USA. Canadians ascribe this to their far tighter gun control laws. In 1993, the regulations were made even stricter. Another factor has been the careful efforts to maintain the inner cities as crime-free zones. The ghetto problems of US inner cities have largely been avoided. However, Canada does have a rising drug problem. Youth crime is also growing, with over 22% of federal charges being laid against youths between the ages of 12 and 17. in 1991. However only 0.04% of youth charges were murder-related.
