The province has launched an investigation into the escalation of “stranger attacks” and prolific offenders in downtown centres as calls for action from community and business leaders escalates.
Attorney General David Eby and Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said the government has heard the concerns about repeat offenders and is taking action.
“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,” Eby said. Untreated mental health conditions and addictions are some of the underlying issues, he said, and are major factors in some of the repeated property crimes.
Vancity Sports recently announced it is closing its Seymour Street location and moving into a new space in Richmond. The store’s owner, John Czvelka, cited the number of homeless individuals, drug users and vandals as a major reason for the move. Czvelka said he boarded up his windows during the pandemic, and has kept them boarded up out of a fear that if he removes the plywood, vandals will break his windows as they have at neighbouring shops.
Seymour Street's decline into being a magnet for homeless people, drug users and vandals is forcing one of its longest operating businesses to close shop.
Although overall crime rates have declined, said Farnworth, there is a small group of prolific offenders who have repeatedly victimized British Columbians and they count for a disproportionate number of crimes, “including unprovoked random attacks, violence, graffiti, shoplifting, or property damage.”
“We know the shift in crime patterns is having an impact on people’s feelings of safety,” he said, noting the solutions will be multifaceted and include mental health supports, prosecution efforts, policing and other resources.
“That’s why our government is partnering with B.C. mayors to launch an investigation — to identify steps we can take to stop the scourge of prolific offenders and protect people and communities.”
A report is due back in 120 days.
The province has retained Doug LePard, former Vancouver Police deputy chief, and Amanda Butler, a health researcher and criminologist who specializes in mental health and substance use disorders, to conduct the probe.
“Failing to address this issue is not an option,” Eby said.
The experts will contact key stakeholders with practical or expertise related to the issue of prolific offenders and the recent rise in violent attacks — characterized as two different streams of people — for information on the origin of these trends and to develop suggestions on policy and legislative responses and also review a slew of current proposals to government.
While the report is four months out, many other initiatives are underway, the ministers said, and the investigators have been asked to bring forward any solutions they identify that could be implemented immediately.
The approach — billed as “creative” in recent weeks — is admittedly old but effective, said Eby.
“If this approach sounds familiar, that’s because my office has taken this approach before,” he said. Similar investigations have been launched on money laundering in B.C. casinos and ICBC, both of which produced successful results, he said.
The investigation is being launched in co-operation with the Urban Mayors’ Caucus, an informal, non-partisan group of mayors from 13 cities representing over 55 per cent of the province’s total population.
Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps and Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran, co-chairs of the caucus, were alongside the ministers Thursday.
The mayors caucus told Eby that police are forwarding fewer cases to prosecutors, the cases are taking longer to review, with fewer going to court, and there are fewer guilty verdicts.
“I want to support the mayors in defining and responding to and defining this criminal problem that we face,” said Eby.
Violent crime and property crime is down, said Eby, but it’s clear that people are feeling less safe.
Helps said as part of the mayors’ caucus review it was revealed that 200 people had 11,000 police interactions.
“This is obviously a significant issue,” she said Thursday.
Property owners in downtown Victoria are tired after two years of the pandemic and want to see changes downtown and the victims of crime by repeat offenders “want help and they want help for their family members,” she said.
Helps applauded the government’s swift action on the mayors’ call for help.
The launch of an investigative report comes on the heels of a random violent attack Wednesday in which a James Bay woman was pushed from behind face-first into the corner of a wall causing a gash to her face and head injuries.
Opposition critic Karin Kirkpatrick cited the attack in question period Thursday, saying: “Despite denials by the Attorney General, random assaults in our communities have increased dramatically; when will the Attorney General end his catch and release and get prolific offenders off our streets?”
- With files from Glen Korstrom, BIV
