B.C.'s A HAVEN FOR CRIMINALS FROM ELSEWHERE

Police have no hold on the cocky, boyish 22-year-old swaggering in the
alley behind the high school off Commercial Drive in Vancouver -- arrested
for selling dope to kids one day, he's back at it the next.

He's a dealer, on the run from Alberta where he's wanted for trafficking,
break-and-enter, theft, breaching probation and failing to attend court.

Don't be fooled by Alberta's call for his arrest; our neighbours don't want
him back -- the warrant has no value beyond the border. Which is why we're
stuck with the likes of him; he knows his crimes don't exist here.

There are dozens like him peddling dope to our high-school kids, as far as
I can glean from Vancouver Const. Gerry Wickstead's case studies on 59
fugitives in B.C.

The reports indicate this punk is part of a long line of offenders who duck
the heat in their home towns by setting up shop here. And we're helping
bankroll them.

More about that in a minute.

Since arriving here from Alberta in late 1998, the 22-year-old has been:

- - Convicted twice in January 2001 for drug trafficking. Sentence: one day
in jail.

- - Arrested on two more trafficking charges last month. He was released the
next day and is awaiting trial.

- - Charged again this month with trafficking. He was released again and is
awaiting trial. How much do you want to bet that charges and sentencing in
our courts will be rolled into a light tap on the wrist?

Municipal police do what they can to flush these unwanteds from our cities'
alleys and sidewalks but our courts make no effort to contain them, despite
records that tag many of them as major flight risks.

Take a 30-year-old trafficker -- Manitoba won't. A provincewide warrant for
his arrest in 1998 prompted him to flee west and start a Langley grow-op.

Police managed to shut the illegal nursery down but he's since been
discovered skulking around Vancouver high schools flanked by adoring teen
fans. His trafficking continues -- as do his welfare cheques.

B.C. tried years ago to stop these non-returnable charge-dodgers from
collecting welfare. The province sought to render them ineligible for
income assistance unless they agreed to plead to the outstanding charges
here. But the courts ruled that the government couldn't do that. So people
who flee prosecution of their crimes elsewhere are keen to come to B.C. to
collect welfare.

Indeed, taxpayers are supporting this guy, who has convictions for drugs,
uttering threats and robbery in Manitoba. He has racked up more convictions
in B.C. while on welfare. Trafficking conviction, July 1999: one day in
jail. Trafficking conviction, November 1999: four months. Fraud conviction:
a day in jail.

These unwanteds are a huge expense on the publicly funded criminal justice
system; the 59 criminals referred to earlier have racked up 736 criminal
charges in B.C., resulting in a total of 447 convictions. They were
sentenced to 10,060 days in jail for these offences, at an estimated cost
to the public of $879,401. Their combined 282 court appearances cost extra.
The case studies show that some land in the Lower Mainland with 60 or 70
convictions on their score card. And a fat lot of good the courts' wimpy
sentences do to straighten them out.

Next week: Out-of-province offenders favour a court in Vancouver where
judges have a rep for leniency.