REGINA — The opposition New Democrats are raising alarm bells about the amount of crime going unchecked in the province.
Their Corrections and Public Safety critic Nicole Sarauer spoke to reporters at the Legislature and pointed to a series of troubling recent crime incidents. One incident she pointed to was a robbery of business in Regina in which three kids were armed with weapons. The oldest child involved was 14 years old.
Sarauer also pointed to the shooting death of a woman on Highway 39 near Weyburn, with police still looking for the shooter.
She also pointed to the case of an individual sentenced for murdering his partner in the Fort Qu’Appelle area. Sarauer also pointed to a drive-by shooting incident in her own riding in which an 11-year-old girl was seriously injured in her own home.
“I wish I could say I was surprised by these stories, but I’m not because this has become sadly the norm in Saskatchewan.”
She said it was “clear” what the Sask Party government was doing wasn’t working.
Sarauer said they wanted to see public safety as a priority, and ensures supports put in place that “keeps kids out of gangs” such as anti-gang strategies and resources put in place.
She also wanted to see solutions for bail other than catch and release, and a focus on affordability and safe housing.
“Saskatchewan people deserve to feel safe in their homes and their communities throughout the province.”
The NDP focus on crime came on the same day that the Sask Party government were opening an expansion of the Saskatoon Correctional Centre, increasing capacity by 312 beds.
In response to the NDP news conference the government issued a lengthy statement outlining their public safety efforts, including investing in hiring 100 new police officers, funding 160 municipal policing through municipal police frames, and hiring 70 Sask. Marshals Service officers by next year.
“Unlike the lost and reckless NDP, whose only plan for public safety is to fire police officers and install doorbell cameras, our government is making investments to protect communities and taking significant steps legislatively to further reduce crime and keep our communities safe and secure.”
In Saskatoon, Minister of Corrections and Policing Tim McLeod spoke on the government’s public safety efforts. He was particularly asked about the incident of the 11 year old girl in Regina, and the charges laid against two individuals that day.
McLeod called it a tragic situation and pointed to the “very troubled times we are seeing” across North America in terms of violence and criminal activity.
“Our government is making significant investments to reduce the criminal activity in Saskatchewan and create safer communities,” said McLeod. “What we are doing here in Saskatchewan has actually shown a reduction in the Crime Severity Index and the Crime rates in our large centres across the province.”
He also pointed to investments in more police officers across the province, as well as new legislation to help them have additional tools. He pointed to the Safe Public Spaces legislation recently enacted to help police remove dangerous items from a community.
“Those items might be firearms, they might be a bladed weapon, they might be bear spray,” said McLeod. “Things that don’t belong in a community because they are unsafe.”
– With files from Jon Perez
