PLANNING SESSION TARGETS DRUGS AND PUTS FACE TO RCMP

Every year the Agassiz RCMP hold their Community Strategic Planning
Session and this year's overall theme was similar to previous years.
The major concern is drugs in the community.

"Drugs were seen as a priority within this area and other communities
within the Upper Fraser Valley and were viewed as the source of
several types of crime from violence and thefts to residential break
ins.

Community representatives were in agreement that community
partnerships are the key to addressing this and other crime issues,"
says Sgt. Mike McCarthy with the Agassiz RCMP.

The planning session on March 15 had representatives from the Agassiz
policing area, which includes the District of Kent, Harrison, Popkum,
First Nations Communities, School District # 78, Agassiz Harrison
Search and Rescue, mayors and council members, fire departments, and
the Regional District. The groups met with members of the local police
office and senior managers from the Upper Fraser Valley Regional Detachment.

"The policing priorities for the past year were reviewed and new
priorities were developed for the following year," says Sgt. McCarthy.
"The Agassiz RCMP would like to thank the community for taking the
time to provide input into policing priorities,"

In addition to drugs another item that was brought up was recognizing
who the local RCMP are?

"One of the common threads in the discussion was that community
members would like to put a face to their local police officers. For
that reason we have included photos of many of the Agassiz members and
staff to be featured in The Observer," says McCarthy.

Some of the misconceptions / questions that are often expressed
are:

Q. Do Agassiz members come from Chilliwack ?

A. No, all Agassiz officers report to the Agassiz office at the start
of their working day and work in Agassiz for the complete work day.

Q. Do Chilliwack officers work in Agassiz ?

A. Chillliwack officers work in Agassiz if they are replacing Agassiz
officers who are on courses, holidays etc. Chilliwack officers are
also routinely in Agassiz to assist with investigations or provide
officer safety support. This assistance from within the Upper Fraser
Valley Detachment is a product of the integrated policing resources.

Q. Are there only a hand full of officers in the Agassiz office
?

A. There are 16 police officers (General Duty, Serious Crime, First
Nations) plus Victim Assistance, support staff and volunteers in the
Agassiz office. The Firs nations policing unit respond to calls in the
Agassiz area and all of the Upper Fraser Valley.

Q. Do Agassiz RCMP staff live in the Agassiz community
?

A. There are a number of Agassiz officers and staff living in the
community and several officers that live in Agassiz but are officers
in other RCMP policed communities. Police forces (including the RCMP)
can no longer dictate where its employees live.

Q. When you phone the Agassiz RCMP (796-2211) do you go directly to
the Chilliwack communications center ?

A. From Monday to Friday during regular office hours the phone is
answered in the Agassiz office by staff who live in the Agassiz area.
In the event of a call that requires immediate dispatch to a police
officer, the call is put through to the dispatch center. After regular
office hours, calls go directly to the dispatch center.

Q. Is police response on a first come, first serve basis
?

A. No, policing response is on a priority basis where calls are
prioritized based on their urgency, threat to public safety, loss of
evidence, threat of injury etc .... Calls that do not require an
immediate response will be attended to but priority calls are at the
top of the list. The Agassiz policing area is very large and a police
office may need to drive from one extreme to the other to attend calls.

Q. Do the Agassiz RCMP police only the District of Kent and Harrison
?

A. In addition to these areas the Agassiz RCMP police several First
Nations communities off Hwy # 7 and Hwy # 9 (Cheam), the Popkum -
Bridal Falls area and all of Harrison Lake.

Further opportunities to meet the local RCMP will be at their 22 nd
Agassiz RCMP Spring Ball on April 28 at the Agassiz Agricultural
Complex on Pioneer Avenue. For more information or tickets to this
formal event of dinner and dancing to a live band, contact Val at the
Agassiz RCMP office (796-2211).