Earlier this year, Boyle Rural Crime Watch passed a motion to fold the group because of lack of interest; however, due to concerns about recent crimes, the group might get a second wind.
“We haven’t folded yet,” said president Terry Jordan. “It looks like we might have some people who might be interested in joining. We might be able to save it.”
Boyle has had a spate of break-and-enters in the last few weeks, according to Boyle RCMP, and residents are becoming outraged.
“Everyone is asking me what the process is to join the group,” Jordan said.
People interested in getting involved can visit the webpage at www.boyleruralcrimewatch.ca, join the Facebook group (Boyle Rural Crime Watch), or send Jordan an email at [email protected].
“If I can save the group and we don’t have to dissolve, I will do that,” Jordan said. “Our special meeting back in April, we couldn’t get anyone to come forward to help run the executive. There was a special motion that allowed us one year to take steps to dissolve it.”
Jordan said the sudden interest in the group is bittersweet.
“It is unfortunate that it takes a spat of criminal activity to get people’s attention,” he said. “It has got a lot of people upset.”
Jordan explained that if enough people express an interest, he will call a special meeting.
“Ideally what I would like to do is get a new executive and then get some committees,” he explained.
The group has endless possibilities if committed members of the community step forward, he stated.
“There is so much more that can be done. A lot of people, what they are leaning towards is they want to run a program called COPP, Citizens on Patrol (Program),” he explained. “There is a lot of work involved in that. It takes a lot of time. It can be done.”
COPP allows members of the group to patrol the community.
“If they see anything, they will report it to the RCMP,” Jordan explained. “There is training that would have to be done. They are not police officers. They don’t make the arrest. They don’t get involved. They report if they see something unusual.”
The program has been established successfully in other communities in Alberta, such as Westlock, and Jordan said that would be a step in the right direction for Boyle.
“It is just time and training to get it up and running,” he said. “It can be expanded into doing home security checks, what to do, how to secure your home in a better fashion. These types of things can be done. That is what I would like to see.”
Currently, Boyle Rural Crime Watch only has five members.
“We have the equipment and the resources to do it. The bottom line is that we need more bodies,” he said. “If there is a lack of interest, the criminal activity thrives. If no one cares, they will just go out and do what they want to do. This is what you get: a series of B&Es and lots of criminal activity. It only goes downhill from here.”
