The recent article about declining crime rates in Oceanside area is lacking in background detail and in categories of related community safety and satisfaction.
First up, the readers need to know if the local RCMP have undertaken a proactive safety program that deals effectively and decisively with complaints of chronic speeders and reckless drivers within neighborhood hotspots.
Satisfaction with police is not possible if children’s and pedestrians’ lives are put into daily peril and police can’t deal with it.
Secondly, this report lacks a perspective of balance. It would be interesting to know if complaints, official and preliminary, against the local RCMP have increased, how many were successful and why many fail.
I notice the category of offenses is limited, and wonder why neighborhood mischief is on the increase and how that can be broken down into specifics and root causes. I also wonder what role community policing involves, if there are resources to followup on community irritants and safety concerns that affect children and school zone traffic offenses.
It is too soon and specious for the local Staff Sgt. to be patted on the back.
Peter Bolten
Parksville