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Volume XIII-Issue 693
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Rural Crime Town Hall Meeting
Back row from left, Crown Prosecutor Jeff Rudiak, MLA Dr. Richard Starke, Cpl. Brad Mouland, Sgt. Juan Huss, and Rural Crime Watchâs Darrell Wright. Front row from left, Tyler Lorenz, Sgt. Jane Boehr, and Victim Servicesâ Heather Koroluk at the Rural Crime Town Hall Meeting in Mannville on October 25. Photo Angela Mouly
Angela Mouly Reporter
Sharing their concern, approximately 250 people gathered on October 25, as MLA Dr. Richard Starke held a Rural Crime Town Hall meeting. The Mannville Agricultural Society assisted in hosting the event and providing refreshments. Constituents were eager to hear what the panel had to say and had a great deal of questions and suggestions on how to help the situation. The panel included RCMP members Sgt. Jane Boehr from Vermilion, Cpl. Brad Mouland from Viking, Sgt. Juan Huss from Kitscoty, Crown Prosecutor Jeff Rudiak, Rural Crime Watchâs Darrell Wright, Battle River Victim Assistance Societyâs Heather Koroluk, and Lloydminster Menâs Shelter Administrator/ Outreach Worker and Smart Recovery Facilitator Tyler Lorenz. ââNot only are the incidents increasing but the brazen nature of the crimes
is increasing as well as the tendency towards violence towards persons; not just property,â said MLA Dr. Richard Starke. Starke plans to carry peopleâs concerns forward to the Justice Minister at the fall session of the Alberta Legislature. Sgt. Jane Boehr shared that the Vermilion RCMP have seen an increase in incidents from an average of 48 reported in June, July, and August to 169 in the month of September. According to Boehr, another significant increase was seen in Kitscoty from 493 reported incidents from January â September of 2016, to 828 during the same period of 2017. In order to address the rural crime and property offenses, Boehr ensured that members are making patrols as often as they can, conducting curfew checks, and have a comprehensive plan coming from Edmonton. âThe plan is not just to do enforcement, but to address the cause whether it is
drugs, mental health, or organized crime. You are our eyes and ears,â said Boehr who suggested calling in serial numbers, plate numbers, and descriptions when witnessing suspicious activity. Jeff Rudiak, Crown Prosecutor from St. Paul said, âNortheastern Alberta is the busiest area crime wise in the whole province. Itâs absolutely unbelievable how busy it is. We see more prohibitive or restricted weapons cases than ever before. Even when a description and plates have been given, cases have been acquitted because sometimes the evidence just falls short. Under Section 35 of the Criminal Code, reasonable force is not defined; every situation is different.â According to Rudiak, the five prosecutors in St. Paul each have 2,000 files on the go at any given time, and currently there are 10 murders cases on the go. According to Darrel Wright, the Kitscoty Rural Crime Watch tries to solve crime, prevent crime, but most of all
educate people on how they can help. âRCMP members do a wonder ful job, but they canât be everywhere,â said Wright. Tyler Lorenz shared unique insight as he has been both a victim and a perpetrator, has struggled with addiction and served time in jail, and has now turned his life around to be an active, contributing member of society as an administrator and outreach worker for the Lloydminster Menâs Shelter and Smart Recovery facilitator. According to Lorenz, he drank heavily from the time he was a teenager and progressed in drug use during his 20âs and as a result lost his marriage, children, house, and employment. In hopes of change he moved to Victoria, but his life continued to fall apart and he became homeless and a heroin addict. âAddiction will follow you wherever you go if it is not treated,â said Lorenz. Continued on page 2
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