Pubdate: Tue, 20 Mar 2007
Source: Daily Courier, The (Vernon, CN BC)
Copyright: 2007 Okanagan Valley Group of Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.dailycourier.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4460
Author: Scott Neufeld

CITY'S SGT. PEPPERS PACKING EXTRA PUNCH

With more criminals spending more time in jail and less time on the city's 
streets, Vernon's top cop seems surprised that people are still fearful of 
crime.

Insp. Steve McVarnock said the police, B.C. Commissionaires and city bylaw 
officers need to keep working together to erase the public perception that 
downtown Vernon is dangerous.

"There's not one thing that's going to be the magic pill," he said. "I'm 
very optimistic that it's going to work."

McVarnock said the downtown is already safe and with the current crime 
reduction strategies in place, prolific criminals are spending less time on 
the streets and more time in jail. "We're letting the public know that 
Vernon is in fact a safe place," he said.

The next move to ease public fears is to train the city's bylaw officers to 
become a front-line presence, McVarnock said. They will soon be receiving 
law enforcement training to deal with criminal activity and will carry the 
tools of the trade including batons, handcuffs and pepper spray, but no 
sidearms.

On a daily basis we'll be getting out on foot with them," he said. "These 
bylaw officers will be tasked with a front line presence."

In addition to their regular duties enforcing parking rules, bylaw officers 
will also be patrolling the city looking for criminal activity. A key 
component of their work will be enforcing the drug paraphernalia bylaw 
which is still working its way through city hall.

The bylaw bans items that can be used to conduct drugs, including pipes and 
needles, from the city's parks. McVarnock said that bylaw officers would be 
given the power to search people to find any trace of illicit drugs.

"The drug paraphernalia bylaw I believe is very critical," he said. "We'd 
like to be up and running by, at the latest, the May long weekend."

The B.C. Commissionaires, the private security patrol hired by the Downtown 
Vernon Association, already attend police briefings and are made aware of 
any suspects police are looking for. McVarnock said they are a valuable 
part of making the downtown safer and he hopes they will continue their 
work through the end of summer.

The DVA has currently raised enough money to keep the patrols going until 
August.
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D