Passing Off Problem People to Nearby Cities

Monday, July 28, 2008 03:45 AM

The case of Robert Inglis, the aggressive pan handler who has been banned from Prince George and now faces a similar fate at his home town of Williams Lake, is a classic case of ever increasing problems facing larger centers in the province.

That is the problem of smaller communities taking their problem citizens out of the community and shipping them off to the larger nearby centers where they will no longer be a bother to those near and dear to them.

Inglis has been an aggressive pan handler in Prince George to the point the Judge took the extraordinary step of banishing him from the city. The Judge sent him home to Williams Lake where the Mayor has asked that Inglis be given jail time so he cannot continue with his ways.

Inglis asked to be banished to Kamloops, of course handing of the problem to that city.

Therein lies the rub, do you simply move Inglis from town to town and city to city without dealing with the root problem, that being that we should start at home to deal with this type of behavior?

There are numerous documented cases of residents of small communities who have become unruly and the community feeling they are unable to cope sending them off to the nearest city.

We have that problem arriving at our doorstep on a regular basis and it only contributes to increasing pressure on the police force, the community and the services we provide. The old argument that smaller communities cannot deal with these types of people just doesn’t wash.

It has been proven time and time again that the greatest way to heal and to reintroduce people back into a community is from the community from which they came.

Prince George and many other similar sized communities get a bad rap as a result of being the deposit ground for the problems from around us.

I’m Meisner and that’s one man’s opinion.

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Posted on Monday, July 28, 2008 03:45 AM in Views by Ben Meisner

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Comments

Posted by: Spikepg on July 28 2008 8:58 AM

I completely agree Ben, while he may have been a problem in our community, he will be no less of one in another. Placing him in jail may be a way to get him off the streets temporarily, but unless there is some rehabilitation during his stay it will likely continue when he is released. It also seems if he is asking to be banished to Kamloops he may be onto our tricks and trying to manipulate the system to get a free ticket to a larger population. Would PG not look like a better community if we help the root of the behaviours likely addictions/mental health. Let's come up with a plan to help him find a more productive and meaningful way to contribute to our community.

Posted by: owl on July 28 2008 9:05 AM

Maybe he will come in front of a more astute judge this time and will be ordered to rehab and/or a mental health facility.

Pushing the sympton to another jurisdiction is hardly a solution. Filling the jails with people who have what is most likely a mental illness is also not a solution.

And reacting as the mayor of Williams Lake has done is the quickest way to make him and this part of the world the laughing stock of the nation. This story is not only in the national news, but also the international news.

This is how Canada deals with its down and out people. Land of the rich. Can't deal with its street people.

As it stated in the Province over the weekend: "the answer in our view is for the B.C. courts to take their responsibility to protect society more seriously. They must ensure that vicious nuisances like this either receive TREATMENT for the problems that obviously plague them or remain behind bars . . . or both."

And today the Globe and Mail said this:
"It is one thing to endeavour to ensure public order by exile; it is quite another to announce what amounts to a civic fatwa, in which Mayor Nelson boasts that his city council and he have "decided to be more proactive and make [the panhandler's] life a miserable hell."

Boy, this guy obviously needs a bit of media training.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080728.COLETTS28-6/TPStory/Comment

UPI story:http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/07/25/Canadian_city_wants_panhandler_out_of_town/UPI-62931217001140

Posted by: Bridge on July 28 2008 9:35 AM

As long as we keep building bigger jails,bigger police stations and the economy comes first we will not solve the problems of our ill homeless people. They are humane beings and respond accordingly.

Cheers

Posted by: lostfaith on July 28 2008 1:22 PM

This whole problem is the fault of our provincial governments past and present.
They thought it better to shut down provincial institutions and dump all the mentally handicapped people out onto the streets.

What we see with this Inglis guy is only the tip of the iceberg.

Posted by: editor on July 28 2008 4:19 PM

Editor:
Mayor Scott Nelson of Williams Lake called Opinion 250 to say he agrees with the comments of Opinion250's Ben Meisner that more must be done to help people such as Robert Inglis in their own home town as opposed to sending them off to a nearby center.
Responding to the column, Mayor Nelson says Williams Lake is a catchment area from his community right out to the coast.
"It is hard on our community to be constantly looking after the ills of other smaller communities." Nelson went on to say, �80% of the crime in Williams Lake is committed by 15% of the same people. We had one guy steal 40 different vehicles and we have to send a message that we are not going to tolerate this anymore."
The Mayor says Robert Inglis has now been charged with five counts of uttering threats and one charge of attempted escape from custody �This guy has over 100 counts against him isn�t it time we did something?"