Pubdate: Wed, 22 Jun 2005
Source: Daily Herald-Tribune, The (CN AB)
Copyright: 2005 The Daily Herald-Tribune
Contact:  http://www.dailyheraldtribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/804
Author: Kevin Crush

POLICE SAY INCREASED USE OF WEAPONRY IN DISPUTES A SIGN OF DRUG ACTIVITY

Escalating drug activity in Grande Prairie could be responsible for 
more weapons being used in bar fights, say RCMP.

Spokesman Cpl. Brent Mundle said cops are seeing an increase in the 
numbers of weapons on the streets - weapons like knives, bear spray, 
firearms, or homemade weapons. Most of it can be attributed back to 
the drug trade.

"A number of the people we're dealing with in these situations where 
we're finding weapons of that nature are involved to some degree in 
the drug trade.

"Oftentimes, I think they're being carried for defensive purposes."

That may be leading to an increase in incidents in the past year of 
knives being used in bar altercations.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, a 22-year-old Edmonton man was 
stabbed in the chest during an altercation between two groups of 
people inside the Utopia nightclub, located in the York Hotel. A 
19-year-old Grande Prairie man also received a minor laceration to the hand.

In March, a 19-year-old Grande Prairie man was stabbed outside the 
Pour House and Party Shack by the Quality Inn. And last October, Luke 
Isaac Desjarlais was stabbed to death during a fight inside the York Hotel.

Part of the problem is rampant drug abuse, particularly in the 
downtown area near Germaine Park, said Dwight Logan, owner of the 
York Hotel. It's causing concern for everyone in the area, he said.

"Anytime there's an act of violence in the downtown I think it hurts 
the whole downtown," said Logan.

"I think one of the things that we should be doing to help control 
this is cleaning up this question of Germaine Park. I, as a business 
operator, have people who hang out in Germaine Park by and large 
barred from my premises, and it's a real frustration for me that this 
is becoming a hideout for them and they go on little forays in the downtown."

Logan, also a city alderman who has been active in trying to get 
Germaine Park redeveloped, said his hotel is doing what it can to 
prevent the incidents by barring drug use, possession or trafficking 
from the hotel and training their staff to deal with those 
situations, but it's difficult to control when the hotel sits beside 
the notoriously drug-plagued park.

"When you do have a user who is out of control, the fact that they're 
not permitted on our premises doesn't necessarily mean they won't 
come on our premises and we have to stop them."

Police have stepped up enforcement in the area, said Mundle, but 
there's only so much enforcement can do to prevent incidents like 
these stabbings.

"You can simply put a lot of pressure on those areas, but what you'll 
simply be doing is moving those people somewhere else or relocating 
the problem to another area within the city if we don't deal with the 
issues that are causing the situation."

A more social solution is needed, said Mundle.

Last year, the city started on a community mobilization and crime 
prevention program to help solve some of the social issues behind 
crime in the city, but being a new group dealing with complex issues 
means results may not be seen for some time.

"Some of the initiatives that project is looking at are going to be 
long-term and there may not be immediate results, because like I 
said, a lot of the things that we are dealing with are social issues."

It's still unclear as to what caused the June 19 stabbing in the Utopia.

An altercation occurred between two groups of people, but no one 
involved is being co-operative with police, said Mundle.
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