Plan for prolific offenders

“I think this is the first time I would say I’ve seen any substantive reaction from the provincial government on this specific issue,” says Superintendent Shaun Wright with the Prince George RCMP. “I’m cautiously optimistic that we might see something action finally come about .”

The investigation will take a two-pronged approach. First, two people, Doug LePard and Amanda Butler, have been appointed to the role of investigators. They will reach out to stakeholders “with practical or academic knowledge related to the issue of prolific offenders,” including the newly-formed Crown Counsel Police Liaison Committee.

The second prong of the investigation will build upon the proposals already received by government. They include:

a. offering courts the option of ordering real time electronic monitoring of those identified as chronic offenders and under release conditions to preserve public safety and confidence while respecting federal rules about release and least restrictive conditions;

b. identifying supports or programs that can effectively be delivered or referred to by first responders (police, fire, ambulance) or by courts for offenders to interrupt the cycle of offending or the escalation of offending;

c. identifying whether compulsory programs between the province’s voluntary complex care housing and the province’s involuntary mental health hospital beds could respond to the unique needs of this group of offenders.

“There been a lot of discussions over the last four or five years. It looks like they’ve been collating some information,” says Supt Wright. “So they may have some preliminary thought on the issue.”

The plan is to have a report back to government within 120 days.

by Cheryl Jahn

Plan for prolific offenders

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