Balcaen blasts NDP over ‘summer crime wave’

Manitoba’s Progressive Conservative justice critic is calling on Premier Wab Kinew and his party to tackle a “summer crime wave” happening across the province.

Brandon West MLA Wayne Balcaen called this summer a “nightmare” for Manitobans. In a press release issued Monday by the PC caucus, he listed several examples of crimes that occurred during the last two months.

“Each of these crimes leaves behind a person who suffers the physical, emotional and psychological scars of being a victim of crime,” Balcaen said. “The premier is clearly out of touch and ignoring the rising level of crime on our streets.”

Among the examples Balcaen listed were the École Secondaire Neelin High School sword attack in Brandon on June 10, the firebombing of a business in Swan River on July 10 and four reported sexual assaults in an around Winnipeg’s Health Sciences Centre within less than an hour on July 2.

He also cited a violent assault and robbery at The Forks on June 6. In that incident, the accused was identified by police as a convicted killer and was linked to another random assault on a woman less than an hour later.

Balcaen blames the spate of incidents on a rise in youth offenders and unfulfilled promises for bail reform.

“Premier Kinew needs to keep his election promise to Manitobans and stop releasing repeat, violent, dangerous offenders,” Balcaen said in the release.

In a televised debate ahead of the 2023 provincial election, Kinew was asked what he would do within his first 100 days in office to get “tough on crime.”

Kinew said he would start with bail and added: “There’s no need to wait for other levels of government to take action here. We can implement bail reform at the provincial level.”

“That was a broken promise that he couldn’t keep,” Balcaen said in an interview with the Sun. “Bail reform is a federal obligation.”

Balcaen acknowledged improvements in monitoring people who are out on bail and said adding 100 ankle monitors to the electronic monitoring program is “absolutely a step in the right direction,” but not the same as bail reform.

“Monitoring is one thing, but a lot of these individuals should actually be held in custody … where they can’t cause any more harm to the public,” he said. “The public expectation is that they are held accountable, not released and monitored.”

Additionally, Balcaen said there isn’t strong enough denunciation for youth offenders, who, without meaningful consequences, continue their actions.

“A big part of making sure people aren’t chronic or repeat offenders is denunciation,” Balcaen said. “They certainly don’t have the intended consequences that should be there for these youth to stop their thoughts, their process and their repeating offences.”

Brandon-Souris MP Grant Jackson said the province needs more mental health services in place for youth offenders — something he said the provincial and federal governments need to get a “handle” on.

“These kids are the future of this country, and we can’t afford to have them make decisions like this and then be, unfortunately, not productive and contributing members of society,” Jackson said in a phone interview Tuesday.

As for bail reform, Jackson echoed Balcaen, calling Kinew’s plan to fix bail reform either a “broken promise” or a misunderstanding of how the justice system works.

He said at the federal level, Conservatives are asking for the repeal of the former Bill C-5 — now Bill C-22 — and Bill C-75.

Bill C-22 removed the mandatory minimum sentences for offences involving firearms, weapons and substances.

Bill C-75 amends aspects of the Criminal Code, including modernizing bail practices by making the primary considerations of release that the accused be released at the earliest reasonable opportunity and on the least onerous conditions possible.

At a press conference in mid-July in which the province announced it was doubling the number of ankle monitors in the electronic monitoring program, Brandon Mayor Jeff Fawcett urged the federal government to take stronger measures on bail reform.

He said he, Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham, Portage la Prairie Mayor Sharilyn Knox and Thompson City Council sent a letter to Ottawa urging the federal government to sit down with the communities and listen to their perspectives.

“We need comprehensive policies that address the root cause of crime and keep our communities safe from repeat offenders. Strong bail reform will support our local efforts and make Canada safer for everyone,” Fawcett said at the time.

In a written statement to the Sun on Tuesday, provincial Justice Minister Matt Wiebe said the NDP is committed to “getting tough on crime and the causes of crime.”

“It’s why we introduced a five-point bail plan endorsed by the National Police Federation and will continue to call on the federal government to do their part in strengthening bail,” he said.

The five-point plan includes implementing the National Police Federation’s recommendations on bail reform; introducing the Unexplained Wealth Act; creating a $2.5-million rebate program for security alarms, doorbell cameras and motion sensor lights; hiring 100 mental health workers to work alongside law enforcement; and ending chronic homelessness in two terms.

“We will continue working in partnership with communities and law enforcement to keep Manitobans safe,” Wiebe said.

» sanderson@brandonsun.com