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Home My WebLink AboutHuron Expositor, 2003-12-10, Page 8• a-TIIE MINOR EXPOSITOR, DECEMBER 10, 2003 Women's Clothing & Accessories SIZES 14 PLUS Quality & Selection Open daily at 10 am Fridays 111 8 pm 61 Hamilton St., Goderich 524-2374 OPP workshops for Grades 6-8 aim to reduce high rates of local vandalism By Susan Hundertmark Expositor Editor The 10 to 15 mailboxes destroyed every weekend across Huron County are just one example of the high rate- of vandalism locally. Sr. Const. Don Shropshall was in St. James School in Seaforth Thursday as part of a five- year initiative to reduce vandalism with presentations to Grades 6-8 students across the county "Vandalism has been rather high and constant over the last few years and we're hoping this.will make a difference down the road," he said. Shropshall told a Grade 6 class that 90 per cent of vandalism in Huron is done by teenagers from 12 to 21 and while he didn't have a figure showing the total cost of vandalism in the county, he said the Avon Maitland District School Board spends close to $180,000 a year on damages from vandalism. "Your school has a budget and the board has only so much money to spend every year. What happens if there's too much vandalism? That $180,000 might have kept a school open when the public school board was looking at closing schools," he said. Shropshall said schools, parks, playgrounds, Main Street buildings and private residences and vehicles are all targets for vandalism. He pointed out that while the cost to replace two broken school windows might be $506 to buy the glass, additional costs of labour, heat loss, hardware and accompanying damage to a classroom because of the broker} window inflate the cost to closer to $5,000. Similarly, the real cost of a broken $275 streetlight is $1,200 and the real cost of a broken $150 stop sign is $500. "There are a lot of hidden costs to vandalism," he said. Shropshall also spent time talking about the serious consequences of vandalism. He told the story of a Huron County' woman who died from a heart attack because vandals had removed all of the road signs and 911 numbers from nearby laneways and the ambulance could not find her house. "Those vandals were Sr. Const Shrops .Don hall BIA Christmas Draw Draw will be made Saturday, Dec. 20 at 12 no Enter. to %VIN with your purchase of S20 (or more) ()the] !()I-11 131A menthe's. 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He added that being impaired by alcohol or drugs is not an excuse for vandalism. He told the story of a 16 - year -old found by Huron OPP passed out at a vandalized school with spray paint on his hands and beer bottles strewn around. The judge did not accept his explanation that he was not responsible for what he did after drinking 16 bottles of beer. "He had to clean up the damage, pay for the damage he couldn't clean up and was given two years of probation. No one forced him to drink that beer," said Shropshall. He told students that after interviewing inmates at the Bluewater Correctional Centre in Goderich, the top six reasons that teens vandalize are anger, the need for attention, peer pressure, boredom, drugs and protest. Shropshall said there are many ways to express anger without damaging someone's property. "The number one rule of dealing with anger is don't hurt yourself or others. When I was your age, my number one friend was my mom and when I was upset, I'd sit down and talk to her about it," he said. He said considering the consequences of the negative attention from vandalism - such as getting suspended from school, getting charged by the police and maybe going to jail, teens would be better off seeking positive attention from good marks at school or helping others. Shropshall warned students that they must respond quickly and firmly to friends who are trying to pressure them into vandalizing something. "You're going to have peer pressure for the rest of your life. You must be strong enough. to stand up and look after yourself. You are your own boss," he said. He said going along with friends, even if you don't 4o the vandalizing yourself, makes you a part of the crime. "Even if you just stood and watched, you will be charged with the same thing, go to court and be punished. It's very important to walk away, go home and tell your parents so that they can call us and we can intervene," he said. Shropshall urged students to find legal ways to protest, by writing letters to politicians and newspapers, putting up signs or signing petitions. He said youth court in Goderich is "the biggest court going" with 200 to 300 people in attendance there every day. He tried to encourage the students to avoid vandalism and the consequences of fines up to $1,000, paying for damages, personal service to the victim, community work, probation and jail. "I don't want ,to end up at your door," he said. Stereo equipment stolen from Walton Rd. Stereo equipment and CDs, valued at $4,000, werelen from a shed on Walton Road in Huron East sometime 'du ag week before Dec. 1, reports the Huron OPP. The equipment, which included a Sony CI) player, a CD changer, an Alpine amplifier and 200 CDs, was taken from inside an 1965 Impala in the shed. Welder, valued at $10,000, stolen from gravel pit A welder and accessories, valued at $10,000, were stolen from a gravel pit on Hydro Line in Huron East sometime during the night of Dec. 5. Police were contacted by Frank Kling Ltd. about a stolen black trailer which was carrying a Wasp welder, an Onan engine, hoses, torches, pipes and other items used by a welder. The trailer, which was parked next to the cement plant in the gravel pit, was hooked onto by thieves who drove away in the night. Anyone with related information is asked to call the Huron OPP or Crime Stoppers. Seaforth car window smashed The window of a car parked at its Goderieh Street residence in Seaforth, was smashed sometime during the night of Dec. 7. Huron OPP say the passenger side window of a 1993 gray Ford Tempo was smashed. Anyone with related information is asked to call the Huron OPP or Crime Stoppers. 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