Williams Lake council want GPS trackers for career criminals
City council petitions the province for increased support of electronic monitoring program for offenders
Williams Lake city council is asking the province — again — to help it crack down on prolific offenders by using GPS trackers.
In 2016, the city proposed that repeat criminals be injected with GPS tracking devices, but that high-tech idea didn't get support from Victoria.
Now, council has sent an open letter to Attorney General David Eby, Minister of Public Safety Mike Farnworth and all the provincial court judges in the province. In it, they ask for increased provincial support of the electronic monitoring program.
The request comes after the RCMP caught thieves looting empty homes during the 2017 wildfire evacuation of the city.
"The community was just upset, like stunned, that while everybody was already under pressure and under stress from being evacuated, these thieves were basically running around having a heyday," said Coun. Scott Nelson.
'We're fed up'
Residents were particularly frustrated once they found out those thieves had been released on bail.
"That's it. We're fed up," said Nelson.
"We felt the best way to keep track of these guys is with GPS trackers. They have to wear them 24/7.... It isolates where they are in real time," said Nelson.
In the past, the province has considered increasing the use of GPS tracking devices. In 2014, the province commissioned a report looking into electronic monitoring in the province. Correctional Service of Canada has also looked at the use of tracking bracelets for prolific offenders.
Nelson says the community has already done all it can to reduce crime including putting more money in the police budget and supporting programs aimed at offenders.
"At some point in our lives we have to turn around and say, 'There are some people out there that just don't care about our community as much as we care about it.' We need to do the next best thing and that's protect our community."
Nelson says he hopes the city can move on the plan to bring in tracking devices in the next two months.
Williams Lake council is awaiting a response from the provincial government.
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