BC Cars Impounded for 40 K and .05

The new laws in BC for impounding vehicles concerns me. Again I stress this is a BC law not a federal law that has been implemented by the provincial government with the lowest approval rating in the country. Speeding and drunk driving are bad. We all agree. Yet crime should be punished according to the nature of the offence.

Speeding kills innocent people. We all got a good laugh when two Hells Angels had their bikes impounded under the new legislation for speeding. Twice. Yet I might add their case was excessive speeding and reckless driving which endangered the public. I am not comfortable with a law that says the police can impound your car for a week for going 40 K over the speed limit.

People will argue that although the law says that it's more common for cars to be impounded for speeding more than 40 K over the limit. Well then the law should say that because more common means they do impound for 40 K which is becoming a burden on our over taxed policing.

Likewise with the drinking laws. .08 is the legal limit not .05. Changing the requirement from .08 to .05 will do nothing to get the drivers off the road that are drunk. Three drinks is over the limit but two drinks is not. Yet with the new law, two drinks is over the limit and they can impound your car for two drinks. That is nonsense.

An article in the Golden Ears Daily said most of the recent impounded vehicles in BC for drinking and driving were for people who blew over .08. They said most that means not all. That means some people had their cars impounded for blowing .05 which means they only had two drinks and their cars were impounded. That is not right.

Officers previously issued up to 40,000 24-hour roadside suspensions a year to drivers in the "warn range" of 0.05 to 0.08. Now they are seizing your car for .05 and giving you a criminal record.

Tom Stamatakis, president of the Vancouver Police Union claims the new law is stretching police resources and that Lower blood alcohol limits fail to target bad drunk drivers.

Right now we are faced with yet another Gordon Campbell tax grab. And they told us the NDP would be the ones who would tax and spend. Yet no NDP government has ever taxed and spent like Gordon Campbell or Brian Mulroney has. Isn't that ironic? Yet the NDP are endorsing the new laws just like they endorsed the MLA pay raises.

Maybe we should be more concerned with human trafficking and organized crime then possession of pot and driving at .05. Why is it we live in a province with such consistent political extremes?

Logic cries out for balance yet we throw caution to the wind and abandon sounds principles of balance at the first opportunity and rage from one extreme to the other. Well that didn't work so let's try this. Well that didn't work so let's try this. How about extremism didn't work so let's try balance. Wouldn't that be novel.

Rehabilitation in Prison

The Judicial Town Hall meeting in Abbostford will be broadcast on Shaw Cable’s Channel 4 on Oct. 24 at 2 pm. I'm hoping someone will tape it so we can youtube Steve Brown and Judge Wallace Craig's statements which I anticipate will be highly relevant.

The Abbotsford Mission Times ran a photo of one concerned citizen sporting the new "Revolving Door Makes Judges Accomplices" T-Shirt that has become so popular here. Obviously a lot of people here are concerned with organized crime and the lack of judicial accountability.

Judge Craig has been a pioneer who has cited case law in defending the public's right to criticize judges in a democratic system. The Times reports that he spoke about how the concept of rehabilitation has been misinterpreted by the courts.

Craig said the concept of rehabilitation has replaced the idea of penal consequence when it comes to sentencing, and described it as an abstract process where judges try to transform evil into docility and tractability.

"Each time a judge fails to grasp the enormity of a violent act and chooses rehabilitation rather than punishment," Craig said, "the victim becomes the proverbial lamb being sacrificed on the altar of rehabilitation."

Strong words and truthful words yet I would like to make a distinction. There is absolutely nothing wrong with rehabilitation of prisoners. Indeed that is the ideal to which we all should seek. A privatized prison that is mandated to make a profit has no concern for rehabilitating prisoners.

The problem arises as Judge Craig has pointed out, when courts twist the concept of rehabilitation to simply mean avoid or minimize any penal consequences. I heard a judge once say in the sentencing of a young offender for a very violent crime that the law has no provision to apply a sentence as a deterrent to crime. I thought to myself, you have got to be kidding. If the law doesn't have that provision it certainly should.

As a result we live with the other extreme where people who commit very violent crime have no real consequences and don't serve lengthy prison sentences. We need mandatory minimum sentences for violent crime, not for the possession of pot. It's really that simple. You commit a crime with a firearm and you get a mandatory minimum sentence. More than if you had committed a crime without a firearm.

Steve Brown stated that his brother in law might still be alive today, if two of his accused killers hadn't had previous second-degree murder charges for the beating death of a 15-year-old boy in Port Coquitlam pleaded down to manslaughter with 18 months behind bars. That is a significant statement that needs to be addressed. How can someone charged with murder only get 18 months in prison only to murder again after the fact?

The Times reported that Brown thinks people should stop supporting an administration that enables criminals and called the province's restorative justice program a failure. Indeed, spending money on prisons and fixing our broken judicial system should be an election issue.

It is another area Gordon Campbell has failed miserably at. Yes the criminal code is federal, yet the judges in BC aren't applying the laws to organized crime in BC the same way they are in Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba or other areas of Canada. This needs to be corrected.

If a drunk driver can create the toughest drinking and driving laws in the country, he can certainly create the toughest organized crime laws in the country. One without the other is insane.

Cop charged with Assaulting Hells Angel

Well this is yet another example of our pathetic justice system at work in BC. An off duty cop gets in a fight with a Hells Angel at a bar in Kelowna. 15 to 20 Hells Angels and Associates jump in and kick his ass. Then they charged the off duty cop with assault.

I don't know which is more pathetic, having 15 to 20 guys jump in the fight or charging a cop with assault in a consensual fight. Do the Hells Angels ever fight one one one? Of course not. The purpose of joining a gang is so you don't have to fight one on one.

Here's the law: If an off duty cop or anyone else walks up to a Hells Angel in a bar and says "Do you want a fight?" and the Hells Angels says yes through word or deed, then that is a consensual fight not an assault. If he said no and the cop sucker punched him, that would be an assault. A Hells Angel charging a cop with assault for chest bumping him in a bar is absolutely pathetic. What next? Is the Hells Angel gonna hit him with his man purse? It's just the continued saga of the bully playing the victim.

Back in the day the Hells Angels had the reputation that one Hells Angels could take on five grown men. Not any more. Now the Hells Angels have the reputation of being bullies and if you look at one the wrong way, 15 of them will jump one guy and give him the boots. There is no L and R there. Just Hate and Disgust.

This case should have been thrown out a long time ago and never gone to court. The Hells Angels should be embarrassed for having so many guys jump in the fight and they should be embarrassed for charging a cop with assault. Whatever happened to "I don't dial 911?"

Mind you if they're not embarrassed walking around with their man purses they sure won't be embarrassed about not fighting one on one.

Yet having our judicial system cater to these known drug dealers like puppets on a string is the biggest embarrassment of all.

Drug Overdose in Maple Ridge Prison

Well we all know there are drugs in prison and we know there are drugs in the Maple Ridge Prison. Peter Adiwal was caught selling drugs there and received no extra time on his sentence. Now the Fraser Regional Correctional Centre in Maple Ridge claims a recent drug over dose in prison is the result of over crowding.

I agree over crowding in BC prisons is a problem ever since Gordon Campbell stopped funding prisons to pay for his two huge raises and his gold plated pension but how on earth is that the cause of drugs in prison? England has a problem with drugs in prison. It's because of corruption.

Corruption is how drugs can get into prison and are used in prison. A bad judicial system that gives no extra time for someone caught selling drugs in prison doesn't help either. The problem is prison guards. 2%, 10% 30% whatever the percentage is, that is the problem.

There is no reason we can't use drug sniffing dogs in our prisons here. Overcrowding is a legitimate problems as well but that is a separate problem. Gordo's prison tents are an embarrassment. How low can he go?

BC Rail Scandal shut down

One thing the Commander wing nut case has taught us is that corruption can enter anywhere. It can enter the military, the police, the judicial system, politics and even the CIA. Especially the CIA. With politics it's a given. Regardless of the party. Now we have an abrupt end to the BC Rail scandal with two MLAs pleading guilty which in turn shuts down any investigation into Gordon Campbell.

Everyone knows Gordon Campbell is a liar. He has the lowest approval rating of any premier in Canada rivaling Brian Mulroney before he left office. Gordon Campbell was recorded on tape campaigning against the MLA's gold plated pension, yet he brought it in along with two huge pay raises once he was elected.

Politics is the only place where dishonesty is not only tolerated, it's expected. There is not a snowball's chance in Hell Gordon Campbell didn't know what his caucus was doing with the sale of BC Rail. His party used stall tactics to delay the trial as long as possible.

Now Campbell has the outrageous audacity to blame his two MLAs and pass the buck by saying "They" waisted millions of taxpayers dollars by maintaining their innocence. They maintained their innocence and cut a deal to cut the proceedings short to save him not themselves.

When he said "These people are criminals," that would include him. There is no doubt he is the biggest criminal of them all. And the most dishonest. Do we really want to put him in in charge of his own provincial police force? I don't.

Colonel Thong

I realize this has nothing to do with gangs or organized crime but this case is so bizarre something needs to be said. Colonel Russell Williams former high ranking military official plead guilty to 88 charges including the rape and murder of one of his personnel. I realize he made a suicide attempt while in custody but it's hard for me to have sympathy for the guy.

Although he is obviously a very sick man, the rape and murder of one of your own military personnel is treason. Back in the day that kind of betrayal was punishable by firing squad.

The absolutely bizarre part is how he broke into a huge number of homes and stole women's underwear. He had them all categorized in his garage. Where and when he stole what from whom. He even took photos of himself wearing the woman's underwear.



Dude that is just plain nasty. It's not like he was gay. He had a wife and he committed rape on a women. He was just freaking weird. Like totally. How on earth did this guy rise so high in military command? It is difficult to comprehend.

Claude Berger

On a more positive note, this is one someone from Quebec sent me. It's about a Hells Angel with talent. Well, former Hells Angel named Claude Berger.

My French needs help but it would appear that in 2002 he was arrested for threatening a judge. As a result he was sentenced to 15 months in prison.

He was a former trumpet player with the Quebec Symphony and a former professor of music at Sherbrooke College. He claims that since 2002 he has no longer been with the Hells Agnels. Now he's a street musician and sells his own CD's. He does a great Louis Armstrong.



He is very talented. I respect that. Someone asked me if there was such a thing as a former Hells Angel. Implying that if you leave the group they will kill you. I don't know the answer to that question. I hope so. If the Hells Angels want to improve their image they have to start letting people go. Salut Claude. Tout le meilleur.

Kelowna Weasel

Here's another strange one. Here's a guy in Kelowna named Sylvain Laroche (Buk) who claims to be a member of the Hells Angels. He's from Quebec but claims to be from the Scarborough chapter and has a plaque from them.

He was convicted of impaired driving when he crashed his Harley in September of 2006. That wasn't his first conviction of impaired driving. Well get this, take a look at the logo on the shirt he's wearing. It's Weasels USA. I'm told he claims that's a puppet club for the Hells Angels International yet I find that hard to believe.



They claim to be a drinking club with a motorcycle problem. Take a look at the Weasels' motto called Hymn 69. Bragging about that is really bizarre. Sylvain is from Quebec. The French are known for being passionate lovers not rude pigs. What happened?

Get this. Kai Raecke wrote their bylaws in 1996. Kai Raecke is on the advisory Council for the Las Vegas 2010 BikeFest. He's listed as the Associate Editor for Easyriders Magazine. Easyriders? That's huge.



Nevertheless, it appears pretty clear that the Weasels aren't an MC they're just a drinking club. Apparently they've even been given a hard time from other MCs. It's kind of bizarre how a group of guys aren't allowed to make a t-shirt and form a club without having to approve everything through the Hells Angels or some other OMG.

I am told the Weasels formed a club in response to the group of rich motorcyclists who call themselves the Hamsters. Peace.

More Hells Angels speeding recklessly

Speeding is one thing, reckless driving is another. When I saw this new video I thought they were just replaying the last one and we just didn't hear that one of the bikes crashed. Not so. It appears that this is yet another video of two Hells Angels speeding excessively and driving recklessly a couple weeks after the last video was made public.

This is really bizarre. Motorcycle awareness is all about driving responsibly. It's not about driving like a crazed teenager on drugs. This kind of behavior gives all motorcyclists a bad rep not just Hells Angels. Running stop lights, driving on the wrong side of the road against traffic. It's no wonder one of the guys ended up crashing his bike.

It's like the idiot who died in Nanaimo. A young driver was changing lanes and didn't see a biker in his blind spot. When he did see the bike he stopped his lane change and returned to his lane. The biker pulled up beside him and started scowling at the young driver, missed a turn in the road and killed not only himself but his passenger as well. Absolutely senseless.

It is unwise for a car or a motorcycle to cruise in someone's blind spot. Now we have Hells Angels driving like maniacs still playing the victim and cry about the media picking on them. CBC, the Vancouver Province and the Burnaby Now failed to mention the fact that the second video was of Hells Angels. That's bizarre. And of course it's obvious I have mental problems because I do mention the fact that they are Hells Angels. Whatever.

Another motorcyclist was caught on camera driving recklessly and crashing in Abbotsford. Driving recklessly is irresponsible. Oh and here's another one:

Three grown men on motorcycles terrorize a female paralympian in Nanaimo. No charges were laid. These dirt bags are out of control. The woman was not in the wrong. She was behind one motorcycle and she was distracted by two other motorcycles that came roaring up behind her. She realized she was a bit too close to the motorcycle in front of her so she put on her brakes. Putting on your brakes is not reckless driving. Doing what these idiots did is. They should be charged with uttering threats and reckless driving. Not to do so is shameful.

East Vancouver Harm Reduction

A blog reader posted a few links in the comment section and I wanted to discuss and link to them directly. It's another look at harm reduction. It's a look inside ourselves that forces us to ask ourselves what are we and what do we endorse?

Vancouver's Drug Nightmare

HARM REDUCTION GONE BAD

the Harsh Reality of Drug Addiction

East Vancouver Darkness - Lisa

methadone heroin interviews

Looking at the videos is a glimpse inside the Downtown East side. I say glimpse because most there don't like cameras or to be photographed. Yet all one needs to do is to walk downtown with a camera on welfare night stepping over all the bodies on the ground to realize something isn't working. This knowledge begs for social justice.

Each addict has a story. Many have experienced horrible events and use drugs to escape those haunting memories for temporary relief which in turns compounds the problems and the misery. Looking at the situation, one is filled with compassion for the addict. Beat cops are essential yet the hunter looking for prey attitude isn't the right one unless it's directed at the drug dealers not the addicts.

The dealers are the ones profiting from the misery. They are the ones pushing women out of windows for drug debts. If a beat cop is a hunter looking for prey surely the hunt isn't a long one. Install cameras outside Carnage centre and arrest all the drug dealers. Don't beat the addicts. They have been beaten enough.

I remember the memorial of a Canadian solder from Edmonton who died serving in Afghanistan. His name was William Turner. They said he was the kind of guy who would say "Hi my name is Bill. I'm here to help." That is the kind of soldier we need walking the beat in East Van. One who doesn't kick the cat and arrests dealers.

Captain Trevor Greene was wounded in Afghanistan and has a moving recovery story. Some criticize him of being naive for removing his helmet and speaking with the elders. I say not. I just think he should of had one of his fellow soldiers watching his back while he spoke with the elders. He was attacked from behind with an axe.

He wrote a book about the missing women in East Van before he went to Afghanistan called Bad Date, The Lost Girls of Vancouver's Low Track. Harm reduction needs to change. Inspector John McKay is a good man. Follow him.

Through a Blue Lens

Tears for April

Stolen Lives