Victoria is facing a public-safety crisis

[daftandbarmy]

From last August... and it's getting worse:

Victoria now among most dangerous cities in Canada​

Once-placid Victoria sees fourth-highest spike in crime severity index, bucking a trend that saw reported crimes plunge nearly 10 per cent from a year earlier across Canada


Victoria, characterized for decades as a placid and safe city, posted the fourth-highest increase in severe crime across Canada in 2020, bucking a national trend that saw crimes reported to police drop 9.8 per cent from a year earlier.

Statistics Canada released data July 27 showing a crime severity index in the city of Victoria of 168 — significantly higher than the 76 seen in the region as a whole. Victoria’s crime severity index also tops that of Vancouver (105) and the B.C. average (96).

Victoria ranked the fourth-highest in the crime severity index (CSI) among cities profiled, with a 3 per cent year-over-year increase in 2020. The CSI had fallen in 27 of 35 urban centres profiled, according to Statistics Canada data.

Victoria now among most dangerous cities in Canada

Once-placid Victoria sees fourth-highest spike in crime severity index, bucking a trend that saw reported crimes plunge nearly 10 per cent from a year earlier across Canada

www.westerninvestor.com

 

[LittleBlackDevil]

This is surprising to me, given that Victoria has for some time had the most police per 100,000 population of any city in Canada (cf. Rate of police officers in Canada, by municipality 2019 | Statista).

 

[daftandbarmy]

This is surprising to me, given that Victoria has for some time had the most police per 100,000 population of any city in Canada (cf. Rate of police officers in Canada, by municipality 2019 | Statista).

About 30% are unavailable due to job related stress issues, apparently.

 

[LittleBlackDevil]

About 30% are unavailable due to job related stress issues, apparently.

I wouldn't be surprised to see this continue and spread to other departments. Police have, in my view, been very poorly treated over the past couple years if not more. During COVID they have been forced to do a lot of the "dirty work" that I'm sure they did not sign up for, to punish people for being out of their homes/not wearing masks/etc. and likely are on the receiving end of a lot of the frustration people have after 18 months of abnormal life.

At the same time you have things like BLM, Defund Police, and the like which reached a boiling point last summer, that villainize the police and adds to their stress.

 

[daftandbarmy]

I wouldn't be surprised to see this continue and spread to other departments. Police have, in my view, been very poorly treated over the past couple years if not more. During COVID they have been forced to do a lot of the "dirty work" that I'm sure they did not sign up for, to punish people for being out of their homes/not wearing masks/etc. and likely are on the receiving end of a lot of the frustration people have after 18 months of abnormal life.

At the same time you have things like BLM, Defund Police, and the like which reached a boiling point last summer, that villainize the police and adds to their stress.

And then you've got the Premier taking on one of the Victoria City Council members for being anti-Police....

"My thoughts on that individual are not printable. I will say that I spoke with Mayor Helps today and assured her I do not view the city council in Victoria as a mirror image of Mr. Isitt. He will carry on living his life the way he does, and we'll have to recon with that as time goes by."

CFAX 1070 | Victoria’s news & information station - iHeartRadio

Listen to CFAX 1070, your go-to station for Victoria's Breaking News & Talk that Matters. Catch up on weather, podcasts, contests, & upcoming local events now!

www.iheartradio.ca

 

[TCM621]

And then you've got the Premier taking on one of the Victoria City Council members for being anti-Police....

"My thoughts on that individual are not printable. I will say that I spoke with Mayor Helps today and assured her I do not view the city council in Victoria as a mirror image of Mr. Isitt. He will carry on living his life the way he does, and we'll have to recon with that as time goes by."

CFAX 1070 | Victoria’s news & information station - iHeartRadio

Listen to CFAX 1070, your go-to station for Victoria's Breaking News & Talk that Matters. Catch up on weather, podcasts, contests, & upcoming local events now!

www.iheartradio.ca

Ben Isitt is an asshat and at the center of almost every bulllshit idea coming out of Victoria council for more than a decade. Helps is almost as bad.

 

[Weinie]

Ben Isitt is an asshat and at the center of almost every bulllshit idea coming out of Victoria council for more than a decade. Helps is almost as bad.

Then how come he keeps getting elected...........oh wait..........Left Coast.

 

[quadrapiper]

This is surprising to me, given that Victoria has for some time had the most police per 100,000 population of any city in Canada (cf. Rate of police officers in Canada, by municipality 2019 | Statista).

It's got all the Exciting Downtown Problems of a much larger municipality: homeless aside, VPD's jurisdiction is the party/protest/Big Civic Event venue for Saanich/UVic, View Royal, Oak Bay, Langford, and Colwood, plus being a magnet for traffic from further afield.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Then how come he keeps getting elected...........oh wait..........Champagne Socialists on the Left Coast.

There, FTFY

 

[daftandbarmy]

#soawesome

Man arrested after asking police for help breaking into ATM

A man breaking into an automated teller machine in downtown Victoria was so focused on his work that he asked two passersby to give him a hand.

Too bad for him they were fully uniformed cops.

VicPD officers were doing patrols in the 900 Block of Yates Street early Tuesday when they saw a man attempting to break into the ATM. They approached, noted the machine had already been damaged and watched the suspect for more than two minutes.

“At that point the man noted that someone was behind him. Without turning he asked [the officers] to help him break into the ATM,” VicPD said. “The officers then identified themselves as police and informed the man he was under arrest.”

The man attempted to flee, but was taken to the ground. After a brief struggle, the man was handcuffed and taken to police cells. No one was injured in the incident.

The man was later released as police continue their investigation.

Man arrested after asking police for help breaking into ATM

A man breaking into an automated teller machine in downtown Victoria was so focused on his work that he asked two passersby to give him a hand. Too bad for him they were fully uniformed police.

www.timescolonist.com

 

[CBH99]

From last August... and it's getting worse:

Victoria now among most dangerous cities in Canada​

Once-placid Victoria sees fourth-highest spike in crime severity index, bucking a trend that saw reported crimes plunge nearly 10 per cent from a year earlier across Canada


Victoria, characterized for decades as a placid and safe city, posted the fourth-highest increase in severe crime across Canada in 2020, bucking a national trend that saw crimes reported to police drop 9.8 per cent from a year earlier.

Statistics Canada released data July 27 showing a crime severity index in the city of Victoria of 168 — significantly higher than the 76 seen in the region as a whole. Victoria’s crime severity index also tops that of Vancouver (105) and the B.C. average (96).

Victoria ranked the fourth-highest in the crime severity index (CSI) among cities profiled, with a 3 per cent year-over-year increase in 2020. The CSI had fallen in 27 of 35 urban centres profiled, according to Statistics Canada data.

Victoria now among most dangerous cities in Canada

Once-placid Victoria sees fourth-highest spike in crime severity index, bucking a trend that saw reported crimes plunge nearly 10 per cent from a year earlier across Canada

www.westerninvestor.com

Is it the weather, or the apparent abundance of social programs, that attract homeless people from across Canada to head to Victoria? Or something else entirely?

If crime is getting worse, and the safety of the city is apparently getting worse, despite having decently high police per capita — what are the roots of the weeds that Victoria and/or BC aren’t tackling?


EDIT: This was supposed to post almost a week ago. Not sure why it just posted now

 

[daftandbarmy]

Is it the weather, or the apparent abundance of social programs, that attract homeless people from across Canada to head to Victoria? Or something else entirely?

If crime is getting worse, and the safety of the city is apparently getting worse, despite having decently high police per capita — what are the roots of the weeds that Victoria and/or BC aren’t tackling?


EDIT: This was supposed to post almost a week ago. Not sure why it just posted now

I dunno... but the chaos is fun to watch from a distance sometimes:

Impaired driver slams into ice cream shop in downtown Victoria, B.C.​

The crash wasn't the end of the chase—a taser was needed to apprehend them

Victoria police were called to the scene of a crash in the city’s downtown core this week, but it didn’t involve another vehicle or a pedestrian. The motorist had driven right into the Marble Slab ice cream shop located ground level at The Bay Centre, the city’s downtown shopping complex.

There were surveillance cameras pointed right towards where the action unfolded and footage revealed a silver Kia Soul hitting a metal garbage can, which goes flying into the Marble Slab window, followed by the car driving directly into the shop’s windows.

The vehicle then hits reverse and backs up out of frame. Moments later, it’s spotted in frame again, this time driving directly into the building’s facade to the right of the ice cream parlour.

The footage is pretty shocking and would’ve definitely been alarming for witnesses to have watched such erratic driving behaviour unfold.

Impaired driver slams into ice cream shop in downtown Victoria, B.C.

The crash wasn't the end of the chase—a taser was needed to apprehend them

driving.ca

 

[medicineman]

I dunno... but the chaos is fun to watch from a distance sometimes:

Impaired driver slams into ice cream shop in downtown Victoria, B.C.​

The crash wasn't the end of the chase—a taser was needed to apprehend them

Victoria police were called to the scene of a crash in the city’s downtown core this week, but it didn’t involve another vehicle or a pedestrian. The motorist had driven right into the Marble Slab ice cream shop located ground level at The Bay Centre, the city’s downtown shopping complex.

There were surveillance cameras pointed right towards where the action unfolded and footage revealed a silver Kia Soul hitting a metal garbage can, which goes flying into the Marble Slab window, followed by the car driving directly into the shop’s windows.

The vehicle then hits reverse and backs up out of frame. Moments later, it’s spotted in frame again, this time driving directly into the building’s facade to the right of the ice cream parlour.

The footage is pretty shocking and would’ve definitely been alarming for witnesses to have watched such erratic driving behaviour unfold.

Impaired driver slams into ice cream shop in downtown Victoria, B.C.

The crash wasn't the end of the chase—a taser was needed to apprehend them

driving.ca

Go Taser!!

 

[CBH99]

anybody else in the LEO community starting to seriously think about putting in an application??

It doesn’t seem like we’d be complaining about really boring shifts anymore.

 

[daftandbarmy]

If you note the addresses, you can guess that the 800-900 Block of Johnson Street is 'ground zero':



Weapons, fentanyl found in search of Johnson Street suite

Victoria police and the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team have seized fentanyl, weapons and cash after a drug-trafficking investigation.

Victoria police and the Greater Victoria Emergency Response Team have seized fentanyl, weapons and cash after a drug-trafficking investigation.

The investigation began in early October with a focus on a suspect in a suite in a multi-unit residential building in the 900 block of Johnson Street.

The suspect was arrested Oct. 15 and found to have a can of bear spray.

Weapons, fentanyl found in search of Johnson Street suite

Three sent to hospital after weekend assaults​

Three people were hospitalized with stab wounds and three arrests were made after a string of assaults on the weekend.

The incidents began about 8:45 p.m. Saturday with a report to Victoria police that a man was chasing two people with a large metal pipe in the 800-block of Johnson Street. A man matching the description provided was found and a metal pipe with a sharpened end was located nearby.

Officers discovered that the man had an outstanding warrant for breaching a court-ordered condition, and he was arrested and taken to police cells.

The two people being chased were not found.

At about 9:2o p.m., officers were called to the 900-block of Pandora Avenue where it was reported that two men had stabbed another man. The victim was found in a tent with potentially life-threatening injuries.

Three sent to hospital after weekend assaults

 

[RedFive]

anybody else in the LEO community starting to seriously think about putting in an application??

It doesn’t seem like we’d be complaining about really boring shifts anymore.

Thanks, but I already work in a badly understaffed, criminally mismanaged, drug addict and mental health ridden jurisdiction.

 

[brihard]

Victoria Police are now offering a $20k signing bonus for experienced hires. They’re looking to hire 12 laterals. I guess they don’t get to count on hemmorhage from the RCMP anymore. I suspect they’ve cast a nervous eye south at what’s happened in Portland.

Victoria police offer $20,000 hiring bonus, seek 12 new experienced officers

Department says it is in urgent need of more frontline officers

www.timescolonist.com

 

[ModlrMike]

Thanks, but I already work in a badly understaffed, criminally mismanaged, drug addict and mental health ridden jurisdiction.

There's lots of us non-police folks to whom that applies too.

 

[QV]

Thanks, but I already work in a badly understaffed, criminally mismanaged, drug addict and mental health ridden jurisdiction.

Victoria used to be a very desirable place to live. F that now.

 

[mariomike]

I already work in a badly understaffed, criminally mismanaged, drug addict and mental health ridden jurisdiction.

I bet everyone in emergency services assinged to a station that gets sent to a lot of skell calls feels that way.

That's where most probies started. But, as they worked their way up the seniority lisr, they transferred to quieter stations.

Although some seemed to thrive in that element, "As long as they walk."

Eight minutes later, they would be someone else's problem.