VPD adding outside officers to police Celebration of Light
Posted Jul 28, 2011 11:47:27 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Vancouver Police are adding some extra layers of security at this year’s Celebration of Light.
Police Chief Jim Chu announced a regional force, which will number in the hundreds, to patrol on land, water, and in the air. “There will be more police working than fireworks nights in previous years, both in Vancouver and on the transportation routes leading into the city.”
“More police means we can vigorously enforce liquor laws, including confiscating liquor being consumed illegally and issuing tickets that carry a $230 fine,” he explains.
The VPD says the Citizens’ Crime Watch team will be out in force on Saturday for the first night of the Celebration of Light, spotting liquor violations or other signs of trouble.
Expect to see plenty of enforcement around SkyTrain stations, too.
“Transit Police will have an enhanced presence on the SkyTrain system in order to ensure that transit passengers feel safe,” says Acting Transit Police Chief Andy Hobbs. “Police and SkyTrain staff will be at SkyTrain stations throughout Celebration of Light event nights.”
Hobbs warns officers will be enforcing liquor laws, specifically drinking in public and under-age drinking. He says they’ll be around SkyTrain stations and transit loops before, during, and after the Celebration of Light.
Chief Chu also has a message for parents. “If we stop a youth under 19 for drinking, we likely will be phoning his or her parents to deal with them appropriately.”
He advises parents to remember if the teen then commits a crime that causes damage to someone else’s property, parents may be civilly liable for the damage under BC’s Parental Responsibility Act.
“Our message to parents this summer is know where your children are and take steps to make sure they are not breaking the law,” says Chu. “If you don’t, you could find yourself in court.”
