Pubdate: Sat, 03 May 2003 Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC) Copyright: 2003 The Vancouver Sun Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477 Author: William Boei TEMPORARY POLICING WILL SOLVE CRISIS, AMERICAN SAYS Vancouver doesn't need a permanent increase in street policing to restore order to the Downtown Eastside, U.S. criminologist James Wilson said Friday. Wilson said a few months of bolstered police presence should do the job, although more bursts of heavy law enforcement could be needed later if drug dealers return to the neighbourhood. The co-originator of the "Broken Windows" approach to policing, which New York used to clear Times Square in the 1980s, Wilson spoke approvingly of Vancouver police efforts to root drug dealers out of the Downtown Eastside. However, he sharply attacked some of the other elements of Vancouver's Four Pillars program, especially safe injection sites, which he termed "free shooting galleries." Wilson called for "coercive" rather than voluntary drug treatment programs for convicted abusers and mandatory drug testing for those who are free on probation or parole. Broken Windows policing involves flooding decaying, drug-riddled neighbourhoods with police prosecuting offenders for minor offences to convince the community "the good guys" are in charge. Wilson was brought to Vancouver by the Fraser Institute to lecture on Broken Windows. He also met with The Vancouver Sun's editorial board Friday. New York City hired 6,000 additional police officers in the early 1990s, while Vancouver has pulled about 40 officers from other areas to patrol the Downtown Eastside. Because of budget constraints, the program will be reviewed after three months. Wilson told The Sun it was a mistake for Vancouver police to reveal "that this is a three-month presence, because drug dealers now know that." He said the extra police should be deployed "long enough for all the people who want to deal drugs in public places to realize the police are there." U.S. cities with similar programs have found that the dealers eventually return to cleaned-up neighbourhoods, he said, but that can be handled by boosting enforcement again as needed. Wilson said he is morally opposed to harm-reduction programs for drug users such as needle exchanges and safe-injection sites, arguing there is no evidence of their benefits. "For the government to encourage people to remain addicted by supplying them with clean needles so they can continue their habits is profoundly wrong," he said in his speech, drawing loud applause from an audience of about 200. - --- MAP posted-by: Josh