Frustration boiled over among many members of the public at a meeting on public safety at the Don Ross Centre Monday.
The meeting, featuring a panel of representatives from Battlefords RCMP as well as Mayor Ian Hamilton, was organized by the City of North Battleford to address concerns about crime and encourage efforts to address it, such as the setting up of Neighbourhood Watch in the city.
But recent crimes in the city, including news of a stabbing death at the Travelodge that morning, posed a troubling backdrop to the meeting.
Hamilton acknowledged at the start of the meeting that "the last three or four weeks have not been stellar times in our community as far as the incidents and the severity of the incidents that have been occurring in the last little while.
"All of us, as a community, are impacted and we should all take that very, very seriously," said Hamilton.
The meeting, which lasted an hour and 45 minutes, was set up as an information session, starting with Sgt. Darcy Woolfitt of the RCMP providing tips on safety and encouraging residents to sign up for Neighbourhood Watch.
He pledged his help in organizing the program in neighborhoods in the city and also urged people to get involved and report crimes, including using Crime Stoppers for those who wish to remain anonymous.
Mainly, though, his presentation focused on ways people can protect themselves and their properties, such as locking vehicle doors, removing valuables from vehicles, having emergency numbers handy, telling their friends and family when going out alone and getting to know the neighbours and the surroundings.
Tension boiled over among many of the more than 200 people in attendance immediately after Woolfitt concluded his remarks.
Audience members stood up and started peppering the panel with questions and comments, starting with one woman who appeared frustrated by the meeting's early focus on safety tips.
"A lot of us, we protect our homes and stuff," she said, but "what is the police going to do about the gangs in town? That's what we're concerned about.
"What are you doing to protect us?" she asked.
Woolfitt talked about the force's response to the rash of school break-ins - "we're dealing with a small group of youth", he said - and also admitted to the presence of gangs. "It's not a new phenomena," he said.
But audience members continued to pepper the panel with complaints, with one complaining that in Warman the police would make themselves available with information. Another complained about seeing four or five police cars at one traffic stop when they could be patrolling.
The exchanges got so tense Mayor Hamilton had to step in at one point to try to calm things down.
"This is a respectful interchange of information," he said. "And no one's denying anything, sir, but that kind of disrespect is not tolerated and is not welcome at this point in time."
Hamilton's calls for order prompted a response from the back of the hall. "But Ian, these people here, we're not criminals," he said.
"It's not right, it can't go on anymore. If we've got a small group of people who are hoodlums, we've got to take care of the hoodlums."
A number of audience members then went on to voice criticism about people not being caught, though Hamilton countered by saying "there have been many arrests."
There was some sentiment in the audience defending the RCMP, however, with one saying "they're doing the best they can."
It was when Cpl. Jason Teniuk stood up to speak on violent crime issues and what the RCMP was doing in response that some semblance of order was restored to the meeting, at least temporarily.
Teniuk spoke about how over the past few years is an "up and down" trend with crime.
"Where are we right now? We're up. What's coming? Down," said Teniuk. He spoke of some of the initiatives he was involved with, including being one of two RCMP officers in a program since June looking after those convicted of a violent offence who are out on conditions.
He said that program is working but it's going to take time, and added there were no swift answers.
"Right now we are at a peak, but give me a chance," urged Teniuk. "We're getting there."
