Police Community Partnership

Police Community Partnership Mission Statement

We are a partnership between the Community, concerned agencies, interest groups, and the Police,
whereby we collectively identify crime, traffic, and social order problems.

We share in the responsibility as well as the effort for the actual resolution of same.
Simply stated, it is a Community partnership in Policing between the public and the Police to improve the
quality of life in the Community.

History

In the early 1990’s our neighborhood was in crises. People were afraid to come out of their homes; others just moved away, most felt helpless and frustrated. As well as problems with Prostitution, there were more than 30 Crack Houses operating in our neighbourhoods. Working with the Police, Elected Representatives, and various City Hall departments, we have succeeded in our fight against crime, and have drastically changed things within our community. Some of the strategies that made us successful include immediate emergency community meetings to share information and organize.

We formed committees to take on specific roles. We circulated flyers and informed the press of our actions to make everyone in our community aware of the extent of our problems and that we were taking action. We organized rallies. We posted warning signs in problem areas. We cleaned up our local parks and made them places for families again, not places for drug deals. We also informed the Police, the politicians, and school officials that the community was taking action.

These actions included the initiation of neighborhood “walkabouts”, originally 3 times a day, as well as large group confrontations at known Crack houses and with prostitutes, employing blow horns, cameras and chanting. The Police often joined us in our crusade. These “walkabouts” continued at least once a day for several months. We fought for improved lighting in problem areas. We sought out crack house landlords to make them aware of illegal activities and to make them more accountable. We initiated the formation of a task force, made up of police, building and fire inspectors, the tax department and politicians to go into crack houses and inspect the premises for infractions and eventually close them down. We produced and distributed a series of newsletters to keep the community informed.

The Police Community Partnership members are committed to continuing to organize our community, and will continue to be tough on crime.

Future Initiatives

Now that we have effectively cleaned up our community, our members have been able to focus our time, and attention, on developing long term strategies. Our first hand experience in the fight against crime has shown us where changes need to be made. Therefore, our Police Community Partnership are in the process of petitioning the Federal and Provincial governments to review the following recommendations:

Sentencing guidelines:
Habitual offenders must be dealt with to the fullest extent of the law. Jail terms must reflect the severity of the crime. No clemency.

Judicial leniency:
Judges are doing a total disservice to the victims, to the community, and to the police by being extremely lenient in their sentencing, especially with repeat offenders. This must change.

Inconsistent sentencing:
These criminals have cost the tax payer hundreds of dollars in court and policing costs. How much of these costs have they been forced to repay? Sentences and fines must reflect actual costs of arrest and prosecution. The criminals must pay…not the taxpayers. We must stop victimizing the victims.

The current paroling system:
When repeat offenders get sentenced, those sentences must reflect their habitual offender status, and they must serve the full term of that sentence. No leniency! Furthermore, we will be asking Toronto City Council to enact legislation that will make property owners legally and financially liable if it is proven that the landlord knew that their premises were being used for illegal or criminal activities.

Finally...

As we have illustrated, we are successfully controlling crime in our community. Our tough on crime strategies works. However, we are frustrated by the lack of support from the judicial system. Changes must be made. Judges must be accountable, not only to those who politically appoint them, but also to the general public who are constantly victimized by their leniency. Even though the Police are under staffed, they do the best they can within the guidelines they are given.

Executive Council

Chair – Claire Andrews
Vice-Chair – Paul Idle
Secretary – Heather Kilgour
Treasurer – Margaret Traccitto
Office Manger – Carolin Banjavcic

How can we help your community?
Is your neighbourhood a safe place for you and your family?
Would you like to get involved in helping to clean up your community?
Our volunteers would be happy to share our success story with you. We can help you get started.

If you are in the Toronto, Ontario area, contact us at 416 - 392 - 1200.
Visit our Community Office at 1884 Davenport Road, Suite # 2, Fax us at 416 - 651 - 3501, or email us at pcp@pcp12.com