CRIME IN QATHET PART II: Promises of Change

Crime, Courts & Corrections : Why qathet’s criminals are bouncing out of jail & what’s coming next

BY ISABELLE SOUTHCOTT AND PIETA WOOLLEY

Chronic offenders are a hot topic in BC.

While the definition wavers, it loosely describes the people who have frequent interactions with police because of theft, assault, breaking and entering and other street-level crimes – most often due to trauma-caused addictions (as Josh Bennet experienced - see 'Speaking with Josh Bennett' ), and sometimes in combination with mental health disorders and brain injuries.

Currently in qathet, there is a small handful of locals who are considered ‘chronic offenders.’ The RCMP estimates there are about six of them who are active at any given time, and they are responsible for about 80% of this region’s crime.

On October 15, residents of both the City of Powell River and the City of Vancouver (and elsewhere in BC) voted in mayors promising to address this surface-level crime wave.

In Vancouver, Mayor-elect Ken Sim and his ABC party promised to hire 100 new police officers and 100 mental health nurses to crack down on crime and disorder.

In Powell River, Mayor-elect Ron Woznow held two crime meetings as president of the Westview Ratepayers Association, while he was campaigning, allowing residents and business owners to vent their frustration that crime doesn’t seem to have consequences – or an end in sight. Before the election, he promised to “identify and implement programs that have been successful in reducing crime and illegal drug use.”

This swing towards law-and-order in civic politics isn’t just evidence of populism or scapegoating; in a watershed report on chronic offenders released on October 1, the Province of BC acknowledged that the behaviour of chronic offenders is significantly harming some neighbourhoods and traumatizing employees in retail and health care – contributing to the labour crisis in these industries. The 142-page report issued 28 recommendations, some of which are about social supports, but many of which are about how the justice system can better serve this very small group of chronic offenders.

On October 17, after meetings between the federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for justice and public safety, BC issued a news release stating that Ottawa is accepting some of the responsibility for the disorder that’s being felt on the ground. The Federal government agreed to more meetings, to fund some new justice initiatives, and to revisit Bill C-75, the so-called “catch and release” Bill.

In the meantime, qathet, like elsewhere in BC and across Canada, is still relying on police, crown counsel and jails to reduce the impact of people going through tough times – like Josh was.

An end to surging crime: Part 2

This article is the second in qathet Living magazine’s three-part series on crime in this region.

Part 1 explored the crimes themselves: what is happening, and what is the impact on this community?

Part 2 dives in to courts and corrections: how changes to our justice system are playing out locally.

Part 3 asks what those who are perpetrating the crimes need to be able to stop harming this community and themselves, and re-join society.

We hope these stories help inform the current conversation about crime, justice, addiction, and solutions. And, we hope to hear from you.

Please send letters (ideally before the 20th of the month) to isabelle@prliving.ca.