PUBLIC SAFETY TOO IMPORTANT TO BE A POLITICAL FOOTBALL: LINDA HEPNER

Surrey, BC (Sept 27, 2014): Surrey First mayoral candidate Linda Hepner says public safety is too important an issue to be treated like a political football.

“There’s too much at stake for our city,” said Hepner, who was first elected to city council in 2005. “Frankly, our community and our citizens deserve a more serious conversation about crime and public safety than the one I’m seeing these days on social media. Right now, we’re seeing a lot of people jockeying for position, taking shots at one another, trying to score political points off family tragedies, or making wild and unsubstantiated claims that are only aimed at scaring people.

“The fact is, if any issue in this election should cut across political lines, it’s this one. I know every single person who’s running in this election, and I know we all want to keep Surrey safe. So, let’s start there and work with our community, our police and our justice system to do just that.”

Hepner, who will attend Sunday’s Rally 4 Change outside the Newton Senior’s Centre, said that like everyone in the community, and right across the country, she was shocked that Serena Vermeersch’s alleged killer, Raymond Caissie, was allowed to go free, even though authorities knew he was a high risk to the community.

“Raymond Caissie was out on the street because our justice system is broken,” added Hepner. “Mayor Dianne Watts had it right when she raised the alarm at the time and said Caissie had been ‘let loose in our community to victimize one of our residents.’ Our police can only do so much, particularly when the justice system fails our citizens. If the existing laws are to blame, let’s change them. If there’s a loophole, let’s close it. Someone like Raymond Cassie should not be on the street, period.”

Hepner added that anyone who says there’s an easy or overnight solution to crime and public safety is being dishonest with the people of Surrey.

“First off, Surrey is a safe community,” said Hepner. “My family has lived here for 29 years and I wouldn’t live anywhere else.

“We have 768 police officers in Surrey today, with another 30 on the way this year. I’m also committed to adding another 100 officers on the ground over the next 24 months. Today, we’re spending $123 million on policing, that’s $54 million more than in 2005, and we’ll continue to invest what it takes to keep our city safe.”

Commenting on Barinder Rasode’s plan to hire 200 safety personnel, Hepner said that while she appreciates the sentiment, Surrey needs real police, not well-intentioned citizens who could become a danger to themselves and the community.

“These people are not police officers,” noted Hepner. “They have no more authority to do anything than you or me, and with just a few weeks of very basic training, I worry that we’re setting ourselves up for a George Zimmerman-type incident where a well-intentioned citizen puts themselves, or someone else, in harm’s way. Policing is serious business, it needs to be handled by professionals. That’s why I want more police, and I want them now, and I want them on the ground.”

Hepner added that Doug McCallum’s plan to pay for more police by selling off the Surrey City Development Corporation, which pays the city an annual dividend, makes absolutely no sense from a policing, or economic development perspective.

“The Surrey City Development Corporation is owned by the people of Surrey and its profits are ours,” explained Hepner. “Last year they paid the city a $4.5 million dividend, and that payment will continue to increase. That’s money we can spend on policing. So, why would we sell off a city asset that has helped us attract $11 billion in private sector investment? It just doesn’t make sense, and sounds like something that was pulled out of thin air. That’s what I mean about having a serious conversation, rather than trading shots and political rhetoric.”

Hepner said it’s also critical that the city, province and federal government work with the community to tackle the root causes of many crimes, because policing alone isn’t enough.

“Ask any police officer and they’ll tell you that on many days they feel more like a social worker than a police officer,” said Hepner. “Mental illness, addiction, poverty and homelessness are common threads in the lives of many criminals. In fact, it is the same in every city, big or small, right across the province and the country.

“It doesn’t matter whether your city is big or small, we’re all facing similar issues when it comes to dealing with the root problems of so many crimes. If we don’t deal with those issues, and work with the other levels of government and with our community, our courts simply become a revolving door. So, when someone says they have a simple solution, I say there’s no such thing. It may not be the political answer, but it’s the truth and I think that’s what our citizens want to hear. At the end of the day, we’re all in this together, our police cannot do it alone. All of us have to get involved to keep our city safe.”

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