NDP CRACKS DOWN ON BIKER BUNKERS

The province is cracking down on gang fortresses protected by bulletproof
windows and bomb-resistant doors with legislation introduced yesterday by
Attorney General Gord Mackintosh.

"We are sending a clear message that this kind of fortification to keep
police out is not something that can be tolerated in this province,"
Mackintosh said.

The new biker bunker law gives the government authority to have
fortifications -- such as brick and concrete barriers in front of windows
and doors -- removed from houses or businesses to give police access in an
emergency. It is also aimed at discouraging gangs from setting up
clubhouses to begin with.

The government is calling it a public safety issue.

Insp. Stan Tataryn, head of the gang unit with the Winnipeg Police Service,
said yesterday he welcomed the support from the government.

"It gives us another tool in our tool chest," Tataryn said. "Right now we
have crack houses that by the time we get in they have flushed everything
down the toilet."

However, some police sources say this legislation was cooked up by the
government without police involvement and that it could be detrimental to
their work. The police say that they have a good relationship with the
Hells Angels; when one of their members is wanted by police, the police
contact the gang's lawyers and that member surrenders.

If the clubhouses move or have to go underground, police won't easily be
able to find them.

Premier Gary Doer has a personal stake in the issue, having taken his
daughters to Girl Guides across the street from a known biker hangout in
East Kildonan. After a spate of biker gang shootings on Winnipeg streets,
Doer vowed in June that his government would take action to put these
places out of business.

A federal bill on gang houses is before the Senate, but it allows action
only after a criminal conviction of someone connected to the building, such
as an owner or inhabitant. Mackintosh said that legislation is too complicated.

Quebec is the only other province with an anti-gang bunker law on the
books. Its legislation, passed in 1997, allows municipalities the option of
passing bylaws to shut down fortified clubhouses. Ontario is looking at
similar legislation.

Mackintosh said he wanted to go further by protecting all Manitobans under
one law, keeping gangs from simply moving to locations where no bylaw
exists. Manitoba's law will allow an inspection of a building suspected of
being fortified, and allows authorities to order the fortifications be
removed. If the order is not followed, the province can go in and remove
the fortifications and send the owner to jail for up to three months with a
maximum $5,000 fine; corporations can be fined up to $10,000.

The director of public safety would decide if a building poses a threat to
public safety, and would make the decision based on such things as the
building's proximity to schools and playgrounds, whether criminal behaviour
has taken place there before, as well as the number of fortifications and
the degree to which they would prevent police from entering or people from
getting out during an emergency.

Mackintosh said law-abiding citizens have nothing to worry about from this
law, which allows for people to take security measures to protect their own
homes and businesses.

"The intention here clearly is to go after places where fortification can
protect criminal activity," Mackintosh said. "There are checks and balances
throughout the legislation including the right of appeal."

Carol Opaleke, who lives in the West Broadway area, said she thinks
knocking down the barriers to police will improve neighbourhood safety.

"I'm sure it will make a lot of people feel more safe," Opaleke said. "The
police can get into my home so why shouldn't they be able to get into theirs?"

Tory Justice critic Joy Smith said the bill looks good on the surface and
her party will support it, but she has some concerns that she wants to
discuss with her caucus, including how the inspectors will be trained. She
also isn't sure the bill goes far enough.

Constitutional law expert Roland Penner said the government probably would
win a Charter of Rights and Freedoms challenge of the law because property
rights aren't enshrined in the Constitution, but he said there may be
challenges in other ways that will win.

"I think the legislation, though well intentioned, is in for some
difficulty," Penner said. "You can't take property without stating the
right you have to do so, on the basis it was used for criminal activity and
they'd have to prove that beyond a reasonable doubt."