CORE CRIME TAKES A BEATING

Core patrol has reduced crime in the city, but problem still lingers

Dave Wilks has become a familiar face to local police.

He is what many Woodstock residents label as a fountain kid.

"The fountain is just where we all hang out," said the 21-year-old. "When
you come here, you know you will see all your friends and these people are
like my family."

Wilks is one of many teenagers who pass time in Museum Square.

While he has had his own run-ins with the law, Wilks said there are
teenagers who have gotten themselves into a lot more trouble than he has.

"For a small town, Woodstock is pretty corrupt," said Wilks. "Downtown there
is drugs, fighting, drinking, kids doing what they want to do and starting
trouble."

Others, who don't want to be as visible as Wilks, sneak off to the graffiti
covered alleyways tucked in behind the stores lining Dundas Street.

One of the most popular alleys is Belt Lane, which stretches along half of
the downtown core.

It is a hot spot for teenagers looking for a place to deal drugs or break
into cars.

"The regular kids who live downtown use it all through the day for drinking,
drug use and drug transactions," said Const. Sean Kelly, who regularly
patrols the alley. "At night, there are people coming in from the suburbs
visiting the area for the same reasons. It's a very active area."

Kelly and his partner, Const. Darcy Campbell, are part of the 'core' beat, a
new initiative started up by the Oxford Community Police Service and city
council that is directed towards combating downtown crime.

In recent years, Woodstock's main strip has fallen victim to heavy crime.

Downtown business owners have grown frustrated with the constant vandalism
and local residents fearful of the fights and large loitering crowds.

Patrolling on foot, bike or by cruiser for the past two months, Kelly and
Campbell have grown accustomed to the changing faces of the strip.

"Early in the day, there are the kids riding their bikes and skateboards on
the sidewalks and there are the kids who hang out at the fountain," said
Kelly. "In the afternoon it is a slightly older crowd hanging out at the
fountain and some of the youth living in the apartments downtown. At night
there are the older people coming out of the bars. We deal with them all."

And as the crowd changes, so do the complaints.

"We respond to merchants' complaints, skateboarders and property damage
during the day," said Kelly. "After 11 p.m., we deal with break and enters,
intoxication, fights and assaults."

Wilks said youth of all ages flock to the core because there is nowhere else
to go.

"All the things we had to do have been taken away from us. They took away
our arcade where we used to play pool and they took away our skate park. So
we just hang out and make our own fun."

However, making their own fun can often mean turning to drugs as a form of
entertainment.

"Drugs are the biggest issue because they are what fuels everything," said
Kelly. "They fuel break and enters, they fuel assaults, they fuel property
damage and mischiefs. Most of the kids we talk to have a criminal record."

Jason Smith, director of Woodstock's Upper Deck Youth Centre, said teenagers
are getting other teenagers hooked on drugs.

"Youth hang out in lose groups and they will usually have a group leader.
The leader will hand out drugs to the teenagers in exchange for them doing
something such as stealing or beating someone up. Once they get them hooked,
then they can start making money off of them."

However, since Kelly and Campbell have been on the scene, Smith said he has
noticed less of a drug presence.

"I know when I would go downtown to work with kids I would be asked if I had
any drugs and now it doesn't happen as much."

Not only has the amount of drugs in the core area dropped, but also the
amount of crime.

There were 16 incidents of assault or disturbance from May 1 to June 25 last
year. That number was cut in half this year with only seven.

There were 16 incidents of mischief and property damage from May 1 to June
25 last year. This year there were only two.

Their success goes beyond laying charges and giving out warnings. Both
officers spend countless hours talking one-on-one with the youth.

"I will sometimes have a smoke with them or sit and have a coffee," said
Kelly.

From that, Kelly gains their trust and often learns about other downtown
criminal activity. It is also a chance for the officers to let youth know
about the community services out there for them and hopefully steer them in
the right path.

While results of the beat have been quick, they are not the final solution.

"For the most part, police can only move the crowd from downtown to other
areas," said Smith. "Most of these kids have run away or been kicked out.
The kids they hang out with are like their family. They won't just disperse,
but will move somewhere else together."

Already, Kelly said he has noticed youth moving a few blocks outside the
downtown area because of the recent police presence.

"They are going to Southside and Caressant Care on Norwich to hang out."

As the next step after the beat, police along with the city and local
organizations aimed at helping at-risk youth have joined together to create
the youth task force.

"Our mandate is to maximize community partnerships, facilitate community
programs, ensure a brighter future for our youths and provide alternative
entertainment for youth," said Natalie Surridge, public relations
co-ordinator for Community Employment Services, one of the several groups
involved in the project.

"Kids tend to get into trouble if they don't feel there is anything out
there for them," said Community Employment director Jeff Surridge. "The
taskforce will work by providing them with opportunities."

While members of the new taskforce are being tight-lipped about upcoming
projects until everything is finalized, the community can expect be told
about the group's plans within the next month.

However, that is not to say residents should expect to never see faces such
as Wilks hanging out in the downtown core again.

"We aren't like London and we don't have the money to fund all the things we
want to do," said Smith. "The problem will always exist. We need to take the
perspective of looking at how to help the problem. There is no quick and
easy fix."