RCMP, COUNCIL TEAM TO DETER DRUG PRODUCERS IN MUNICIPALITY

Local RCMP and the municipality are working together to develop a plan to
deter drug producers from setting up in Mission.

Mission council is drafting a bylaw which would target the owners or
landlords of a property where a drug producing operation is found.

"The bylaw is really aimed at making it expensive for people to have grow
operations," said Dennis Clark, Mission's director of corporate
administration. "We will try to recover as many costs as we can."

The district wants to be able to invoice property owners for costs related
to dismantling marijuana grow ops or crystal meth labs, such as police
services, fire department services and any other service from district
staff, said Clark.

A first draft of the proposed bylaw, which is modelled after existing ones
in Chilliwack and Abbotsford, was introduced to council members for the
first time at an in-camera meeting on Monday.

According to Clark, councillors had a number of questions and staff are
currently "checking a couple of things."

A final draft of the bylaw and its adoption are expected in about a month.
(Last week The Record reported wrong information as to when the bylaw would
be in effect.)

Mission RCMP established teams this month to provide drug enforcement in
the district. Police officers are brought in on their days off and paid
overtime to focus on grow ops and take them down, said Mission RCMP Staff
Sgt. Jack Robinson.

These teams will research and try to obtain search warrants for suspected
properties. They also get together on certain dates to execute the warrant.

Landlords worried about who they are renting property to can request a
criminal record check from prospective tenants. Criminal record checks are
performed by the RCMP on a voluntary basis.

"You can't ask the RCMP to do a criminal record check on someone else,"
said Const. Tammy Sandquist. "You can only do it on yourself."

The individual must sign a consent form. Details of the search will not be
provided, said Sandquist. If charges appear, police will indicate the
individual "may or may not" have a record. If no charges appear, police
will report the individual does not have a criminal record.

"We don't get into specifics," said Robinson, who also noted a "may or may
not" result should raise a red flag about the individual. "It comes down to
a trust issue with the landlord and tenant."

If landlords are concerned, they should ask more questions, said Robinson.

The only way police can confirm a person has a criminal record is with
fingerprints. The prints are sent to Ottawa where a search is performed and
results are sent back to the detachment.

"It's the only way to positively do it," said Robinson.

Police do not conduct criminal record checks on young offenders because
their records cannot be released to the public.