SIGNS ON CALGARY'S INNER-CITY PAY PHONES WARNING CRIMINALS THAT CALLS
MAY BE TRACED ARE PART OF A NEW SAFETY CAMPAIGN

John Mar Wants To Put The "Pay" Back Into Pay Phone.

That is, for the drug dealers who hang around inner-city phone booths
and frighten away legitimate users.

The Calgary alderman is behind a brand-new move in Cowtown, where all
phones in the city core will have a sign warning users that its
records can be obtained by police if anyone is caught using the phone
to break the law.

Mar hopes the threat of cops poring over miscreants' information
about their drug contacts is enough to keep them away.

"It's to take away the anonymity," explained Mar, a former Mountie.

TRACK

"Whoever you call, if you're trying to use it for an illegitimate
use, we can track and we can forward that information on to the
proper authorities."

He added: "There's a massive amount of drug crime that goes on
through the anonymity of (public) telephones."

Edmonton has the same problem.

Chances are, you've seen it yourself, even if you didn't realize it.

Maybe it's one or two nervous, twitchy women swaying back and forth
as they try to catch the eye of passing motorists.

If you look around carefully, you might notice a man nearby. He'll be
sitting in a car or loitering half-way down the block, keeping a
close eye on the women and making sure they're earning their keep.

Or perhaps you've seen a skinny, dishevelled man on a bike approach
the phone, make a quick call and then disappear down the street. An
hour later, he's back.

He delivers drugs for a dealer. Often, they'll carry pagers and when
it goes off they use the phone to get delivery directions from the dealer.

Drug-addicted prostitutes often ply their trade close to public
phones so they can call their dealer immediately after turning a
trick. Along with the prostitutes come the trolling johns, pimps and
drug dealers, who can bleed the life out of neighbourhoods with
constant fights, late-night noise, intimidation and harassment of passersby.

Mar said he initially wanted the problem pay phones ripped out, but
soon realized there are inner-city people who can't afford phones of
their own. For them, having a public phone nearby is vital.

LEGITIMATE

"They obviously have legitimate uses," he said.

Then he found out about the stickers, which are being used in San
Francisco and have dramatically reduced problems around pay phones.

Telus, which owns the phones, "applauds the city's efforts," said
company spokesman Chris Gerritsen.

However, Gerritsen cautioned that he doesn't want the public to think
phone calls are being recorded.

"No one is listening in," he stressed.

Police have always been able to get a court order for Telus to supply
call records --the time of the call, the numbers dialled and the
duration of calls.

The signs are just a reminder that cops might do that, especially if
they have reason to believe a lot of drug deals are being made over that phone.

"We'll know who they're phoning," Mar said.

Lorna Wallace with the City of Calgary said the sticker campaign,
called Operation Sentinel, is part of a larger campaign to make
Calgary's inner city safer.

"We're very excited about it."