Experts investigate solutions to address prolific offenders in B.C.

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There has reportedly been an increase in crimes in city centres across B.C. that can be attributed to small groups of prolific offenders, which the province hopes to address through this investigation.

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“Any time that someone is a victim of crime, whether it’s a property crime or a violent crime, they, along with their families, and sometimes entire communities, are affected,” said David Eby, Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Housing.

“Untreated mental health and addiction challenges are major factors for driving some of these individuals to commit these repeated property crimes, and it’s incredibly frustrating for local governments and residents to see the associated and highly visible disorder and chaos.”

In order to improve safety and security in downtown cores across the province, the project will seek creative and co-operative solutions to address all facets and contributors to local crime, and help break the cycle of prolific offenders.

While some cities are increasing their police force to address these issues, Eby noted that it won’t be a feasible long-term solution, and that work is being done to improve complex care supports to assist people struggling with mental heath and addiction issues.

Eby added that accessing the support programs is voluntary and they likely won’t be used by the prolific offenders, saying that is why further solutions need to be found through the investigation.

The investigation will also be supported by the Ministry of Public Safety which will offer assistance and resources to the experts.

“We recognize the damage prolific offenders inflict on B.C. families, businesses and neighbourhoods,” said Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General.

“An investigation by experts with a wealth of experience working on finding practical solutions is an important initial step in a very complex issue.”

The structure of the investigation will be similar to those used to address money laundering through B.C. casinos and used to deal with the financial crisis at ICBC.

The process will start by having the experts reach out to key stakeholders with practical or academic knowledge or expertise related to prolific offenders and the recent rise in crimes for information on the origins of these trends.

That information will be compared to other government proposals. The combined information will be used to identify the problems and how they can be addressed, and will result in a report with recommendations for actions being submitted to the government.

It was noted that the experts have been advised that if they find opportunities for changes to be made prior to the final report deadline, they can advise government to take action to address the findings.

The province will also continue to work with partners such as municipalities, prosecutors, social agencies and police to ensure communities are safe and accessible for British Columbians.

“As the mayors of B.C.’s large urban cities, we are at ground zero of hearing the frustration and seeing the consequential impacts that repeat property offenders are having on our communities, local businesses and residents’ sense of safety,” said Colin Basran, mayor of Kelowna and co-chair of BC Urban Mayors Caucus. “We are pleased to see the quick action by the province in responding to the caucus’s concerns. We are hopeful that the work of this report will be a catalyst for improved integration of health and justice, and offer meaningful solutions that builds up the public’s confidence in the administration of justice.”

The Opposition Liberals say the NDP government’s plan will do very little to make British Columbians feel safer in their communities.

“People were promised ‘creative solutions’ and immediate action from this government and the best the NDP government could come up with is a report to be completed four months from now, that may or may not be acted upon — where is the urgency in that?” asked House Leader and Kamloops MLA Todd Stone.

Stone contends Vancouver has an average of four random assaults every day, meaning nearly 500 additional random assaults may take place before the report is released.

“The NDP had plenty of time to properly examine the situation and use the tools at their disposal to go after these prolific offenders, and they didn’t. Instead, they’ve let the situation spiral out of control,” Stone said.