Citizens protecting their own property

Dear Editor:

Consider the following;

1. A property owner in Penticton’s industrial area finds it necessary to put up razor wire on his property fencing due to repeated thefts perpetrated by the criminal element that appears to flourish in Penticton (Herald, May 7).

2.The new head of the Penticton RCMP detachment reports that property crime has escalated dramatically and that his officers have the highest case load of any detachment in B C. Reportedly, many more police officers would be required to correct this at great expense (and with limited results based on the current situation with respect to law and order in Canada.)

3. As the use of the razor wire contravened a city bylaw, the owner had to get the city’s approval to keep the protective razor wire up, which appears to have solved the theft problem. As the wire was at a height that would not cause injury to a non offending person, the need for the bylaw appears to be questionable.

4. Approval was granted by city council, but only by a narrow 4-3 vote.

5. Preliminary results on a poll being conducted by the Penticton Herald had roughly 89% of the respondents agreeing that installing the barbed wire was justified.

6. The current justice and parole systems in Canada favour the rights of the criminal over that of the general public and require a complete overhaul to effect any change.

Do you think that this is a policing problem or a justice system problem?

As public opinion appears to favour change, why does none ever happen? Ask your elected officials.

Claude Bergman

Penticton