Two weeks ago, a contingent of downtown business people appeared in Council chambers to draw attention to their long festering frustration and anger at conditions in the downtown. Open drug dealing, ingestion of drugs, urine, feces, business people feeling threatened, and customers and clients being driven away have compelled these business people to bring the issue to the attention of the city.
But why is this issue being brought forward by the business community rather than by the leadership of the New Westminster Police Services?
This issue has been building for some time, why have Police Services been quiet about the issue? The same must be asked of the Police Board.
A recent article in the RECORD says the city has now hired a security company to patrol the downtown seven days a week, between 6:00 A.M and 10:00P.M. And now an article in the NEWSLEADER reveals that several businesses in the downtown are considering installing video surveillance cameras.
While video surveillance cameras certainly bring up issues of civil liberties, one has to ask why these merchants are moving in this direction with such desperation.
In 1999-2000, there was a situation in the downtown where scores of illegal immigrants from Central America, and others, were selling drugs in the downtown. In that case, as the seriousness of the situation mounted, the police were also silent on the issue. However, the Council of the day acted decisively and dealt with the situation effectively. That Council gathered the Police Board and senior police staff into a room and stated very clearly that the situation was out of control, that it was unacceptable, and that it would not be tolerated. As a result, a complex integrated plan of action was put forward by the senior management team. It was funded, it was executed, and with a tremendous effort the situation was resolved.
The July 16, 2008 RECORD reports that the city has once again put together an integrated plan. I believe the plan has merit given that the main architect of the plan is Lisa Spitale. However, I seriously doubt that the political leadership is capable of, or is even interested in, a long term sustainable solution to the problems that have taken hold of the Downtown.
The RECORD article outlines several measures intended to deal with the situation: Increased foot patrols, undercover operations, no-go orders from the courts, private security, enhanced street cleaning and maintenance, by-law enforcement and an off leash dog park were all put forward as examples of measures the city can implement. The July 16, 2008 RECORD quotes Mayor Wright response to the plan as follows: “That dog park is brilliant,” said Mayor Wayne Wright, “It will work.” Yes, that’s right, the Mayor, fresh from a junket to China, was able to zero in on the salient part of the plan -- the dog park. Now if that doesn't inspire confidence in the Mayor's analytical prowess I don’t know what will.
New Westminster consistently ranks in the top two or three in the Metro Region in categories of crime per capita, police expenditure per capita, case load per officer and ranks low in clearance (solved crimes) rates. Given what is happening in the downtown, it is clearly time to take a serious look at a Regional Police Force. The public have shown a high level of interest in the idea of a Regional Police Force and Angus Reid polls reveal that the majority of residents in the region favour the creation of a regional force.
An examination of New Westminster’s Police Services provides several reasons for taking a serious look at a Regional Police Force: a highly politicized and ineffective Police Board and a moribund leadership in police services has led to low morale in the force, defections, premature retirements, a spotty record of dealing effectively with gender based issues and a commonly held view by the rank and file that the leadership is still trapped in the ‘eighties.’
Some months ago, when the Mayor was asked by the local press what his opinion on the issue of a Regional Police Force was, he stated that he was against it because nobody could explain to him what it would look like. After five years in the Mayor’s office, and a decade-long public discussion on the issue of a Regional Police Force, why is it beyond the grasp of Mayor Wright to envision what a regional force would look like?
Gang warfare in the Lower Mainland, again, has exploded, and individual municipal forces, including those municipalities served by the RCMP, are incapable of effectively dealing with it. Despite the creation of some regional integrated task forces, the patchwork of municipal forces has not been able to constructively deal with the situation.
Crime does not recognize borders. It is time to seriously examine the notion of a Regional Police Force. Several high ranking police personnel in the Lower Mainland (those who are allowed to speak on the issue by their mayors) have come out in support of a Regional Police Force. The B.C. Chamber of Commerce has expressed support for the idea, and Dr. Robert Gordon, head of SFU's School of Criminology has presented a well thought out and compelling case for an amalgamated police force.
But Mayor Wright is against the idea because he doesn’t understand it, and may not even be capable of understanding it, just as he has failed to grasp the magnitude and impact of crime in the downtown.
Security cameras and the hiring of security personnel to patrol the downtown are the strongest evidence yet that our police services are simply incapable of providing safety and security in the downtown because of inadequate leadership. It is time for a serious examination of regional amalgamation of police services in the Lower Mainland and it is time for some leadership.
C.C.
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5 comments:
The positions your group is taking sets it apart from any current people in office. I appreciate our police, but we need to move past emotion and history. Look at other large urban areas. They all have moved to unified police forces.
Keep up the good work. I'm on your side!!
A few months ago, I attended a meeting at which the featured speaker was Mayor Wayne Wright. Accompanying the Mayor on this particular night was the Chief of Police, Lorne Zapotichney,and Fire Chief Carl Nepstad. I viewed this as an opportunity to not only learn about the City, but to get a perspective from the Police Chief and the Fire Chief.
The Police Chief spoke first and his role was not to speak about Police Services, but to introduce the Mayor. To my amazement, the Police Chief spoke at length as to how the Mayor was a hard worker, listed the committees he was on, and generally attested to what a good job he was doing, and what a fine individual he was. It was a purely political introduction. The Mayor spoke next, not unexpectedly he blew his own horn and talked about developments in the City. Chief Nepstad finished the speakers list, with again, a highly political speech. The Chief even revealed how he had voted in the last two elections. I and some of my fellow attendees were literally, left speechless after this highly partisan and inappropriate opening and closing by two such senior city employees.
In discussing this issue with other community members, I learned that this type of event is not uncommon. The Mayor, as Chair of the Police Board should know how inappropriate this is, and that this type of activity compromises the departments that these two individuals head. I find it shameful that the integrity of two of the most important positions in our City has been relegated to “arm jewellery” for the Mayor.
For the reasons stated, I found this event to be extremely troubling.
Susan Wandell
The Mayor, Police Chief and Fire Chief are making New Westminster look like an episode of the Dukes of Hazzard. But then what else can we expect from Wayne and his "Boss Hogg" style of running the city. Where's the "General Lee" when you need it?
There is a certain charm about having a force that is specific to the city; it contributes to a middle America "small town" quality. Unfortunately, it becomes detrimental when the politics exampled in Susan Wandell's posting take hold, and sadly, they have.
In instances such as that, the reserved amount of sympathy I might have for the officers in charge is minimal compared to the lesser respect I harbor. That kind of shameless politicking does a disservice, not only to the citizens and business community of New Westminster, but also to the dedicated members of the entire force. Indeed, it does smack of "Dukes of Hazard" buffoonery.
The ostrich mentality whereby “if we don’t acknowledge it, it doesn’t exist” is no longer working for our Mayor and his police board and consequently, their negligence has given rise to a “feet on the street” public reaction. Yes Virginia, there is an elephant on Columbia Street, and the rest of the herd is about to tromp its way through the rest of New Westminster.
A regional force is an idea whose time has come. Our national force, the RCMP, contracts with municipalities like Surrey and Burnaby, but they function as a municipal force and, albeit to a lesser extent, the jurisdiction related problems exist in those municipalities too.
Over the years, improved transit between policing jurisdictions, an ever-increasing population base, and the on-going development of high density projects to accommodate the growth, has led to an increase in criminal activity. On a per capita basis, it might be suggested that the crime rate is going down, but on a hard-numbers comparison basis, that is not the case.
Indeed, crime knows no borders and existing enforcement officers are handcuffed by jurisdiction issues. It is therefore more than reasonable to suggest that the problem of increased criminal activity be addressed through a more comprehensive, expanded approach. Crime stats should be the measure for determining staffing levels, and the only thing that should be addressed on a per capita basis is a municipality’s share of costs for a regional police force.
The concept of a regional police force is certainly food for thought. It is doable; the OPP, Ontario Provincial Police, are a well established, functioning entity. If BC was to move in the direction of resolving jurisdiction issues, that would be one less hurdle toward dealing more effectively with existing and rising criminal activity. Then, maybe, hopefully, we could focus on courts and corrections!!
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