Interessanter Bericht! Auch wenn es viel ist, es lohnt sich, den ganzen Bericht zu lesen:
ZitatWilliams Lake citizens, whose community once held the title of crime capital of Canada, have taken back their town.
Officials say the victory was achieved by locking up repeat offenders, building bridges with native leaders and enlisting dozens of citizen volunteers to nab crooks.
“We took back the city,” says one-term Mayor Kerry Cook. “Everybody felt like things were out of control. There was a feeling that this is just the way it was and it happens everywhere. We couldn’t accept it.”
In 2008, the city of Williams Lake was given the dubious distinction of being No. 1 in the country in a report called the Crime Severity Index.
The Statistics Canada report, which gives murder more weight than mischief, examined cities with populations over 10,000. In violent crime, Williams Lake was No. 2 nationally for 2008.
But with auto thefts down 71 per cent and break-and-enters dropping by 40 per cent in 2010 as compared to 2008, the city is giving itself a pat on the back for a job well done. The unwanted label has been ditched, with Williams Lake giving up its top-dog status in 2009 stats.
Zitat“It has been a total transformation,” said Panago Pizza owner Wendell Blois, whose north-end restaurant was a repeated victim of thugs armed with bear spray and machetes.
“Everyone was in fear. Before, store owners needed to make sure you weren’t wearing a bandana over your face before they buzzed you in with magnetic locks. Now, it’s no longer necessary.”
But amid the successes, locals are taking stock of how it became a crisis.
Reckless behaviour
In 2007, thieves went to great lengths to smash the shatterproof glass windows at Tom Wong’s sporting goods store.
Someone even stole a jeep and aimed it at the store, Caribou Ski Source for Sports, hoping to come away with skates and skis.
“He didn’t make it through because there were concrete blocks in the way,” says Wong.
Another time someone hurled a heavy manhole cover, but the double-paned windows are virtually impregnable because a sheet of laminate holds them together.
“Most break-and-enters are caused by the same people. Their activities start up as soon as they’re released from jail,” Wong says.
A security firm still checks on the doors several times each night, and 32 video-surveillance cameras have been installed on his properties.
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24.01.2011 22:08
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