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Home My WebLink AboutTimes Advocate, 1999-07-21, Page 6Wednesday, July 21, 1999 oir osor mom TIMES -ADVOCATE PUBLICATIONS MAIL REGISTRATION NUMBER 07511 Jim Beckett Publisher and Editor Deb.L.Ord Don Smith General Manager Production KLiyiger Published by J.W. Eedy Publications Limited 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850 Exetvr, Ontario NOM 1S6 • (519) 235-1331 EDITORIAL Washroom declared off limits to police • he washroom has always been a sort of sanctuary, in addition to its other functions. Many a young lad spent a quiet hour or sarsitting in the little shack behind the houo_whtre he could read a slightly racy pocket novel without fear of dis- covery. It has alsk.been a perfect place to sneak an unau- -thorized sirtoke break at the office. ,....School kids could evade the principal by ducking into.the bathroom. And mostparents have discovered Itis one of the only places in the house with a lock on the door, where one can relax and glance through the news- paper without being interrupted. "He cannot come to the phone right now," is nego- tiable; the caller can say he will wait, or ask where the person is. "He cannot come to the phone right now, he is in the bathroom," is not negotiable. The only possible response is, "Oh." ' The bathroom is quiet and private, an ideal place to get away from it all for a few minutes. And •according to a recent legal decision, you can hide out from the police there. Apparently a Waterloo regional police officer caught a guy with his pants down - metaphorically speaking. He was snorting cocaine in a bar wash- room, was caught and searched by the officer who found some cocaine in his shirt pocket, and was charged accordingly. While one 'cannot help but agree with the judge who decided that people in a washroom have the right to freedom from government intrusion, one also has to wonder where this decision will lead. For example, a' thief running from police might opt to heed the call of nature, scoot into the nearest restroom with the police hot on his heels, and shout, "Home free!" If the officers follow him in.the Kitchener Charter decision mearis they had better demonstrate a similar need to relieve themselves, or .they might be in trouble for illegally pursuing someone. Arid what happens if the officer happens to be chasing a thief of the opposite sex? To take it one step further, could a psychotic killer armedito the teeth with enough fire power to start a small war claim sanctuary in a mall washroom? When personal rights come into the picture, there is always a delicate balance between the right of society in general to protection under the law, and the right of the individual to do what he wants, free from fear of persecution. The dividing line has traditionally been the law of the land. Violating it places society's rights above those of the criminal. That is not to say those in vio- lation of the law have no rights; they do. Among them is the right to a prompt and public trial. Everyone also has the right to fair treatment by police and the courts. Our courts have decided that the result of a police search is not justification for it, probably in the fear that officers might manufacture their own "justifi- cation". Recent court decisions about a British Columbia man's right to possess child pornography -blurred the line. This decision forbidding police to arrest a person caught consuming illegal drugs in a wash- room has just about erased the line. The message is starting to come through loud and clear that the document designed to guarantee indi- vidual freedoms is being used to weaken laws designed to protect individual safety. reprinted from Saugeen City News ..amopitilon end should :st Living year round in Grand Bend means having to take the good with the bad. There are lots of great things about living in this vibrant lake side community but like clockwork every year when the weather warms up 'Bend resi- dents become nothing more than second 'class citi- zens in their own community. Every summer it's the same story in this tourist town. Village residents have to put up with increased traffic, no parking, noise and garbage pollution and worst of all a marked increase in crime. Last month, a concerned resident wrote to Grand Bend's council headed up by Mayor Cam Ivey and pleaded with them in a three page let- ter to help'bring peace to the community." • "Real families and retirees holiday and live in the Village of Grand Bend," the resident wrote. "Every May 24 and let's not forget other long weekends, Grand Bend is a community in crisis and needs help and funds at every level to con- trol and hopefully, eventually eliminate this unhealthy, violent and abusive behaviour." She suggested the village explore measures includ- ing installing surveillance cameras, .holding land- lords, bars and breweries responsible and beefing up existing bylaws. The bottom line is this woman and almost every other permanent Grand Bend resident is sick and tired of being a prisoner in their own homes when tourists converge on their small village. There is no easy way to answer this type of exas- peration and it is just too easy to pass the problem off as "this AG Grand Bend and that's just the way it Calling for more police and bylaw enforcement offi- cers would only be a band-aid solution and is unlike- ly to happen because of an already stretched police budget. Grand Benders need to come together and estab- lish community policing in their village. It all goes back to the adage: If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. North 'Lambton Constable Luke George, who is also a Community Policing Coordinator for the region, is hopeful Grand Bend will establish a proactive pro- gram like Citizens on Patrol (COPs). George credits the program with effec- tively helping police in communities like Watford and Pt. Franks cut down on crimes of all types. He's heard'Grand Bend has been looking it the program for months but volunteers have yet to come forward to establish COPs in their community.' KATHERINE HARDING ff HAD TO BE SAID "I Wink it is a great idea in any community but untillicommunity wants it it won't happen," he said. • Village residents and responsible cottagers have to stop passing the problem off. onto the police, bylaw officers and council to solve. Community involvement will not rid Grand Bend of crime but it will certainly curb it and show visitors to the village they are coming into an established com- munity where residents care abOut where they live, work and play. k4-'21:1; About the Times -Advocate Address & Office Hours Times -Advocate, 424 Main Street South, P.O. Box 850, Exeter, Ontario NOM 1S6. Our office is open Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm. 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