'We do not have time': Alberta justice minister vows to tackle rural crime

The Alberta government intends to work "as fast as humanly possible" to solve the problem of rural crime, even forgoing consultation, in order to make changes quickly, Justice Minister Doug Schweitzer said Tuesday.

"Typically government likes to go and consult and do studies. We do not have time. We literally need to act," Schweitzer said at a town hall on rural crime in Leduc.

"Some of the stuff we're maybe going to have to adjust six or 12 months down the line. I'd rather make an adjustment. I'd rather have good than perfect."

People in the crowd of 50 told Schweitzer stories about break-ins at their homes and businesses.

Diane Donovan said her summer home in Ma-Me-O Beach was broken into twice in one day.

The first break-in occurred at 2 a.m. when they were at their acreage near Leduc.

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Donovan and her husband Jim spent the day at the Ma-Me-O Beach house fixing the door. At 10 p.m., they heard the sound of ATVs coming back to the house.

"They knew there was alcohol in our house. Our house was lit up like a Christmas tree. It was obvious we were home. And they came back," Donovan said.

"I went to bed with an axe and a bat that night ... we looked through our window and a guy came and he was going to kick in our door yet again. He had a beer bottle in his hand, that was a weapon."

"This happened in seconds. Seconds. You do not have time to assess whether you're going to get hurt or not. You just assume you are going to get hurt."

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Carolyn Houston, who also has a home at Ma-Me-O Beach, said RCMP have to come in from Wetaskiwin, Leduc or Ponoka. By the time they arrive, the perpetrators are gone, she said.

"There's not even any point in phoning the police," Houston told Schweitzer. "People just give up and don't call."

Schweitzer told reporters afterwards that stories like Houston's are a sign ofa larger issue.

"That to me just speaks to the fact that we have a breakdown in rural Alberta that justice is not being done and that we have to take this issue seriously and start tackling it head-on with the resources that we've committed to," he said.

Clarity needed

Others at the meeting expressed frustration that they are not able to defend themselves.

One man talked about the case of Eddie Maurice, the southern Alberta farmer who was charged with shooting a trespasser.

The Crown dropped the charges but now Maurice faces a civil lawsuit from one of the trespassers who says he was injured by one of Maurice's warning shots.

Schweitzer said he wants to come up with a way to prevent landowners from facing a similar lawsuit. He also wants his ministry to find a way to clarify the rules around self-defence.

"People are frustrated, people don't know what the line is, what they can and cannot do, and I take that as a takeaway that we need to provide better education for Albertans about what they can and cannot do," he said.

Schweitzer has spent the last month holding town halls on rural crime throughout Alberta.

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