MISSION NOT IMMUNE TO GANGS AND GUNS

It seems Mission is not immune to the proliferation of the latest
phenomena of "gangs, guns and violence."

Make no mistake, this latest plague has everything to do with the
"business" of illicit drugs and organized crime. This is the
unfortunate by-product of systemic inabilities of the health care
system to effectively treat and deal with the wave of drug addiction
infecting our communities, thereby reducing demand, and of the
criminal justice system (of which I am a part) to provide effective
deterrents to those who choose to profit from the misery of others.

We continue to deal with escalating violence and a proliferation of
firearms. These problems are predominantly being fueled by the drug trade.

In typical fashion, someone doesn't pay their drug debt or one dealer
rips off another; that someone gets a beating. Retaliation results
and the stakes then get ramped up through the use of bats and clubs.
You know where this is going, of course - the next step up in this
tit-for-tat battle is the use of firearms. Once the guns come out,
they start with threats and intimidation, progress to drive-by
shootings and then targeted hits. A wounding only further ramps up
the violence until someone is actually killed.

So what does this mean for those of us in the community? Take some
comfort in the fact that these home invasions, assaults and shootings
are indeed targeted - there is nothing random about them. In most of
these cases it gives us cause to question the concept of a truly
"innocent victim." The danger, of course, is that there will be an
actual innocent victim inadvertently caught in the violence; that
someone will target the wrong house or vehicle or a stray bullet will
find an ordinary citizen.

Rest assured we are doing everything in our power to investigate
these matters and bring the offenders to justice. We must work within
the rule of law - they don't. This is not an issue unique to us here
in Mission; it is occurring throughout the Lower Mainland. This is a
long-term struggle that will only be won when we significantly reduce
the demand for the drugs and provide effective deterrents to the
criminal gangs.