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Rural home owners get helping hand from government

“The biggest concern (rural homeowners) have is safety for themselves and for their loved ones. We want to make sure they’re safe in their communities and that their property is safe,” said Doug Schweitzer, Minister of Justice and Solicitor General.
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A rural home on Mountain Ridge Place, west of Cochrane in Bearspaw. Photo by Cathi Arola

Choosing to surround your home by wilderness, instead of neighbouring fences in an urban setting, is a lifestyle choice for many Albertans. This preference shouldn’t come with the cost of personal security or safety.

 

The provincial government has launched a plan that will deter rural crime, reinforce property rights and give victims a stronger voice in the justice system. The Rural Alberta Provincial Integrated Defence Force (RAPID Force) will expand the roles and authorities of 400 peace officers in the Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Branch, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Branch and the traffic arm of the Alberta Sheriffs.

 

With adequate training, these officers will be able to respond to a wide range of calls and can assist the RCMP and other police services in some emergencies.

 

“The biggest concern (rural homeowners) have is safety for themselves and for their loved ones. We want to make sure they’re safe in their communities and that their property is safe,” Doug Schweitzer, Minister of Justice and Solicitor General, told the Cochrane Eagle.

 

Schweitzer said the RAPID Force initiative was conceived after he and other MLA’s held more than 20 town halls around the province. One such town hall took place outside of Cochrane.

 

“All of the ideas and policy initiatives that we’ve announced this month came directly from Albertans.” He said the feedback was excellent and until attending the town hall meetings Schweitzer and his colleagues didn’t realize the scale or scope of the challenges rural home owners faced.

 

This is the first step of many to help give people confidence in the justice system.”

 

Training and planning with the initiative is underway. Trained officers will be deployed by fall of next year.

 

The Occupiers’ Liability Act will also see an overhaul. Changes to the act will eliminate the liability of law-abiding property owners who are protecting their property against trespassers who are - or are believed to be - in the act of committing a crime. This provision will be retroactive to January 1, 2018.

 

"The biggest thing we wanted to do is make sure law abiding Albertans are protected and to make sure law abiding Albertans cannot be sued by somebody trespassing or committing a criminal act on their property," he said.

 

Planned legislation will also include a proposed five-fold increase to the maximum fines for trespassing offences, with fines of up to $10,000 for a first violation and $25,000 for subsequent offences, in addition to possible prison time of up to six months. Changes will also increase the maximum amount a court can order for a loss of or damage to property from $25,000 to $100,000.

 

The initiative will also enable residents to partake in the sentencing of offenders by allowed them to submit a community impact statement that describes how the crime has affected the community as a whole - including the emotional, physical and economic impact or anxiety they might have for their own security. Downloadable impact forms will be available in early January.

 

“I’m hoping (the community impact statements) will allow the judiciary to see the dramatic impact rural crime is having on communities and hopefully we can get stronger sentences as a result,” Schweitzer said.

 

The government will also launch a Restitution Recoveries Program that will assist victims in collecting outstanding payments on restitution orders. The program also gives the government the authority to use enforcement measures against offenders including garnishing wages or seizing and selling property.

 

Corp. Troy Savinkoff, Cochrane RCMP spokesperson and head of the Cochrane Crime Reduction Unit says the majority of crime in rural areas around Cochrane originates in Calgary. He says homeowners in Springbank and Bearspaw are typically targeted because of geographical convenience.

 

Savinkoff urges homeowners to contact police whenever they see suspicious activity and to avoid approaching individuals. This can include something as innocuous as a stranger knocking on their door. He explains that criminals often go door-to-door and target homes when it’s apparent that no one is at home.

 

“Something like that is suspicious behaviour because it’s them seeing if you’re home or not. If you answer the door they’ll move on to the next one. A lot of times they’ll come to the door and present themselves as pretty normal,” Savinkoff said.

 

“Any time someone is knocking on your door for an apparent no real reason, that would be worth a call with a description of the vehicle and individual.”

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