Ontario - Police Target Career Criminals

OFF THE WIRE
Horsemen and Red Devils
Source: Chatham Daily News
By ERICA BAJER, THE DAILY NEWS
Chronic offenders are in the crosshairs of the Chatham-Kent Police Service in its efforts to cut down on property crime.
"We have identified individual criminals who we deem to be essentially career criminals," said Deputy Chief Clare Wiersma. "The group is clearly responsible for a large percentage of the property crime in Chatham-Kent."
He said the service has started a chronic offender program that targets the people responsible for the bulk of local property crimes.
The program got off the ground in early summer and is part of the service's strategies to reach its 2010 goals. The top three goals for the year included reducing property crime, reducing the presence of outlaw motorcycle gangs and increasing road safety, Wiersma said.
The chronic offender program has officers keeping close tabs on individuals.
The deputy chief said there are currently 15-20 people police view as chronic offenders.
"We focus our resources on those people as opposed to just reacting to the crimes they commit," he explained. "We notify them that they are on our list and will be receiving special attention."
He said a part of the program is to offer to help the chronic offenders change their lives through referrals to community organizations and government agencies.
"In the majority of cases, there is drug addiction involved," he noted.
Wiersma said some of the career criminals have expressed a desire to change.
"It appears that a few of them are making the attempt," he said.
For the others, police keep a heightened presence around them to ensure they don't get into trouble.
"If they continue in their pattern of engaging in criminal activity, they will be seeing a lot of us," he said.
Wiersma said a big part of how successful the program will be relies on the service's community partners, which include the Crown Attorney's Office and probation and parole.
He said local prosecutors are on board and will be seeking harsher jail sentences for chronic offenders as well as stricter bail conditions.
Another new initiative aimed at combating property crimes is the asset forfeiture officer, who seizes property used during crimes or acquired as a result of criminal activity.
Wiersma said asset forfeiture is "a significant tool when you can take away the profit of crime."
The deputy chief said in 2010 police also focused efforts on combating biker gangs.
"We've identified that as a priority largely out of concern that the Hells Angels or other hardcore one-percenter motorcycle groups may be trying to gain a foothold in Chatham-Kent," he said.
He said the two local motorcycle gangs, the Horsemen in Ridgetown and Red Devils in Chatham, have affiliations with members of the Hells Angels.
He said provincially, outlaw motorcycle gangs are reemerging as a significant threat to public safety.
"Outlaw motorcycle gangs are involved in murder, drug trafficking, prostitution, extortion, fraud and theft -- all things that police and the public have worked to curb in Chatham-Kent," Wiersma said.
He said a local officer is part of the provincial biker enforcement unit and the service continues to keep tabs on biker-related activity.
"The Chatham-Kent Police Service is determined to disrupt all outlaw motorcycle gangs within our borders with an attempt to deter the Hells Angels or other gangs from establishing a foothold within Chatham-Kent," he said.
Raising awareness about the problem is part of the service's plan to make the municipality less attractive to bikers, he said.
"One of the objectives is to educate the public to let them know that while some of these gangs may be attempting to clean up their image and be
supportive of community charities, they still are members of organized crime," he said.
Wiersma said traffic collisions account for most preventable deaths and serious injuries in Chatham- Kent, making road safety a top priority for police.
"Public surveys indicate traffic safety is a primary concern of citizens," he added.
The deputy chief said aggressive driving and impaired driving are the primary causes of most fatal collisions.

Police have stepped up the amount of speed enforcement on local roadways and additional radar devices have been purchased.
Wiersma said 113 RIDE programs were scheduled in 2010 and police upgraded intoxilyzer equipment.
Two new drug recognition experts were also trained in 2010 to help police assess people believed to be driving while impaired by narcotics.
In 2010 there were 10 traffic-related deaths in nine crashes. Two of the fatal collisions were alcohol-related, he added.
Wiersma said the 2010 goals were part of the service's mission to make Chatham-Kent the safest community in Ontario.
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