The Calgary Police Service regularly conducts community surveys to determine what issues are most important to Calgarians and to ensure police programs reflect community needs and expectations. The 2000 community survey revealed the following issues as the top policing priorities for citizens:
In the following months I plan to discuss each of these priorities in more detail in Calgary’s Child. I will outline the Calgary Police Service programs and initiatives designed to address these concerns and provide useful information on how you and your family can join our efforts to tackle these issues. In the meantime, I would like to highlight some of the information on these concerns available for you and your children on the Calgary Police Service Web site at www.calgarypolice.com.
The Calgary Police Service continues to target break-ins through an emphasis on crime prevention programs and by focusing investigations on repeat offenders. This resulted in clearing more house break-ins in 2000, and contributed to a one-third reduction in house break-ins compared to 1999. The crime prevention section of our Web site provides a home security checklist to help make your home safer. Tips include joining or starting a Block Watch program, keeping garage windows curtained so thieves can’t look for items to steal, and replacing older locks and window frames with new products that can improve security.
As parents, we are always concerned about keeping our family safe on the road. To evaluate your knowledge of traffic bylaws, log on to the Calgary Police Service Web site Traffic Section and take our traffic quiz. The Web site also provides information on Operation Collision Reduction and current photo radar locations. Tips for new drivers are available at the Web site’s TeenZone, including reminders to lock car doors while driving to prevent anyone from jumping in while stopped, and to turn on the hazard lights immediately if the car breaks down to alert other drivers.
The Web site’s TeenZone provides useful information for both parents and children. It discusses methods gangs use to recruit new members, describes what gang members look like, and emphasizes that gangs are usually formed to commit crimes. The Web site also dispels many myths about gangs, including the myths that they provide loyalty, protection and get respect.
The majority of vandalism complaints involve graffiti. To respond to this growing concern, the City of Calgary and the Calgary Police Service teamed up to form the Graffiti Awareness and Abatement Project (GAAP), which encourages Calgarians to assist in our efforts to stop graffiti by recording, reporting and removing it.
The Web site outlines the steps to take when you or your child sees an act of graffiti vandalism. TeenZone encourages you to take a photograph of the graffiti, write the date, time, location and your signature on the back of the photo, and drop it off at your local District Office. It also reminds children that graffiti is not an art form, but destroys Calgary’s natural beauty, is costly to eliminate, can be hurtful in its content, and most important, is illegal.
With juggling work, home and our children’s swimming lessons and hockey games, most of us rely heavily on our vehicles. It’s no wonder that one of Calgarians’ top policing concerns is stolen vehicles. The Web site’s crime prevention section offers many tips to make a car thief’s job more difficult, such as keeping valuables hidden, installing security systems and parking in well-lit and well-travelled areas.
Drugs have long been a concern of both parents and the Calgary Police Service. As a parent, I know that this is not always an easy issue to discuss with your children. The Calgary Police Service Web site’s KidZone and TeenZone may be able to help you with these discussions. KidZone gives tips on how to stay drug free and encourages children to talk to their parents or a trusted adult about drug use. TeenZone describes specific drugs and the effects they can have on children’s and their families’ lives.
To keep informed and up to date on these and other issues of concern to parents, visit the Calgary Police Service Web site at www.calgarypolice.com. Activities and information for children and teens are regularly updated in KidZone and TeenZone. If you didn’t receive the fall issue of our newspaper, the Police Advisor, which also discusses these issues in detail, please pick one up at your local District Office or click on the link on the Web site’s home page to see the online version.
We welcome your comments on the information available on our Web site or in my Calgary’s Child column. We would also appreciate your suggestions for future topics. You can send us your feedback either through e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or fax at 216-5358 or by calling Lyla McLaren at 206-8989. Thank you for helping us provide the information you feel is most valuable for your family’s safety and wellbeing.
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