Sidewinder Legalization tied to bottom line. p6
Safe crossing sought for 225th Street. p10
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Shooting suspects released no charges laid in murder of Claude Deguire by M on ish a M a r ti ns staff reporter
Colleen Flanagan/the newS
Grade 12 student Brandi Munro will be filling out a ballot when students at Pitt Meadows secondary vote provincially during an in-school election on May 10.
Schools engaging young voters Important issue is cost of post-secondary education by Nei l Corbe tt staff reporter
T
he ripples of the provincial election are being felt in high schools in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows this May. There are, of course, some graduating students who will be old enough, at 18, to cast a ballot for the first time this May. But the program Student Vote B.C., operated by Elections B.C. and Civix, is facilitating a parallel
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election for students. It is an effort to get them engaged in the electoral process at a young age, and have young people start to think about politics while they are still in school. In the 2009 general election, about half of registered voters cast a ballot. In the 55-plus age group, about 70 per cent voted. But for young adults, only about 40 per cent went to the polls. Pitt Meadows secondary student Cole White will cast a ballot in the student vote, and says he and his friends do talk about political issues, and even about the election. When local candidates were at
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tions will cost students an average of $17,000 a year. “If you’re from a lower end-wage bracket, you’re going to be a long time paying that loan down.” One of White friend’s wants to become a surgeon, and he is anticipating a whopping $90,000 in student loan debt. White points out that the present generation is bombarded with information and points of view in a way their parents never were. “With social media, people become more intertwined with how the world works,” he added. “You hear a whole bunch more about government now.” See Voting, p8
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Pitt Meadows secondary to discuss the election recently, they might have been expecting softball questions from the kids. White put them on the spot, asking if they would be prepared for the kind of massive student demonstrations that plagued government in Quebec in 2012. “We’re worried about our future,” he said. “We care about our country, and we care about our province.” An important issue for B.C. teens is the rising cost of postsecondary education. “It’s ridiculous for some places,” he said, noting that attending this province’s most expensive institu-
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Two men who were arrested after a drug dealer was gunned down Monday in Maple Ridge have been released from custody without charges. The men, aged 26 and 27, were held in custody overnight in connection with a shooting that killed Claude Gille Deguire, 26, but released on Tuesday. Sgt. Peter Thiessen said investigators continue to look for a third man who has yet to be identified. Deguire, 26, was shot at close-range just before 8 p.m. near Thrifty Foods in Haney Place Mall. Thiessen said the violence was drugrelated. The two men were arrested a short distance away from the mall’s parking lot, on 226th Street near 119th Avenue. Both are known to police, as was Deguire. The shooting was the first homicide of the year for Ridge Meadows RCMP and the second fatal shooting at a mall in Metro Vancouver in a week. Police would not confirm whether Deguire was once associated with the United Nations gang. John McKenzie, who lives on the south side of Lougheed Highway, was not surprised the murder was connected to the drug trade. He claims street-level drug dealing is rampant in his neighbourhood. “They are operating in plain view,” said McKenzie. “The whole incident [on Monday] started right at the corner. I’ve been dealing with this for 10 years. RCMP have to put more officers in the area.” Another resident of the neighbourhood, who asked not to be identified, claimed to have witnessed the beginning of a fight that ended with Deguire being shot.
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