Kelvin Goertzen and Attorney General and Minister of Justice, the Honourable Don Morgan.
Violence and gangs need aggressive approach
Manitoba Progressive Conservative Justice Critic, Kelvin Goertzen, met on Monday with Saskatchewan Attorney General and Minister of Justice, the Honourable Don Morgan, where the two discussed community safety issues including approaches to combat gangs and violence.
“Since being elected the Saskatchewan Party has undertaken an aggressive approach to reducing violence and gang activity. As violence continues to escalate in Winnipeg and Manitoba, there needs to be a new aggressive approach taken here as well,” said Goertzen.
Goertzen noted that after 9 years in government and countless announcements by the NDP that promised to reduce violent crime, not only is there no evidence that it is working, it only appears things are getting worse.
“The programs put in place and millions of dollars invested don’t seem to be having any measurable impact. Every indication from police is that violence is getting worse, not better,” said Goertzen.
Goertzen said that in both Saskatchewan and Manitoba there is evidence that crime can be reduced when there is a concerted effort to ensure probation orders are being followed and that court orders which are broken result in re-arrest.
“Just like with auto theft, there needs to be dedicated police resources and the use of technology to aggressively enforce all court orders on gang members in Winnipeg. It should be a zero tolerance effort and we should be using technology like GPS tracking to make it work. Any and every violation of a court order by a gang member should result in quick arrest and jail,” said Goertzen.
