Crime Prevention Council discusses strategic plan

Random acts of violence can make people second guess their safety but according to one member of the Crime Prevention Council, that perception isn't accurate.

Members of the Crime Prevention Council met to discuss their strategic plan on Saturday. Members broke up into four teams to brainstorm ideas on what key issues the council wanted to address. Some of the ideas mentioned were on how to address issues on around mental health and education.

Tom Walters, a member on the crime council, said they’re looking implement their plan within the year. One of the challenges the crime council faces is the perception of crime. He said the majority of crime in the city involves property and not violence.

Although, the alleged random stabbing of a 24-year-old-woman last week didn’t help to change that perception. Random acts of violence do happen but most violent crime is between people who know each other such as in domestic disputes, he said.

"We’re not like Toronto where you have people driving by shooting people for the fun of it," Walters said. "Of course, (that incident) creates a perception in the city and people say ‘Holy Mackerel, maybe this isn’t such a safe place to be in.’ That’s an isolated incident and there are a lot of underlining factors."

To change that perception, Walters said the best method the crime council has is to share the information it gathers with the public.

In order to do that, the crime council will need a focused strategic plan that addresses those underlining factors that can lead to crime such as mental health, drug addiction and poverty, he said.

"Some of the issues are so big that as a Crime Prevention Council we’re going to have to be fairly selective on what it is we do and try to narrow it done," he said. "I think we can accomplish and we can feel good about it and it will have an impact."

Kim Baskin, 24, a youth representative on the crime council, said growing up in Thunder Bay gave her an insight on what issues impacted youth the most. The plan should look to address issues around substance abuse and diversification, she said.

"It is definitely not going to be easy," Baskin said. "It’s going to be a process and it comes from a lot of community involvement. It’s not just this council but everyone coming together and being able to share and build on what’s out there."