Premier David Eby recently visited Nelson to address growing worries about habitual property offenders.
During his trip on April 24, Eby participated in two separate meetings—one focused on community safety and another with local environmental organizations.
The community safety session at Nelson City Hall was closed to the public and media.
It brought together representatives from the city council, the Nelson Police Department, the local Chamber of Commerce, and various social service providers.
In a discussion with the Nelson Star, Eby noted that it was clear the provincial government must prioritize habitual property criminals.
He explained that the same individuals keep reoffending, creating a significant safety concern downtown and affecting how people feel about their community.
The visit followed concerns raised by local police and business owners about an increase in downtown crimes and the insufficient resources to counter them.
Nelson Police Chief Donovan Fisher revealed that officers respond to 20–30 calls daily related to theft, vandalism, and aggressive behavior.
Fisher added that just six individuals are behind most of these incidents, with two of them responsible for nearly 500 calls over three years.
In another case, an individual was arrested in January and now faces 14 charges, including eight for theft under $5,000 and stolen property.
Eby pointed to the province’s Repeat Violent Offending Intervention Initiative, launched in May 2023, which combines police coordination with mental health services to prevent reoffending.
Local stakeholders have now suggested extending the program to also cover property crimes—a proposal Eby deemed reasonable. He mentioned that the province is also urging the federal government to reconsider bail rules to allow judges more flexibility in keeping offenders in custody.
According to Eby, a few individuals sometimes need time behind bars for the broader community’s benefit.
At the meeting, participants further requested better access to complex-care housing for people struggling with mental health issues, substance-use disorders, and brain injuries—services currently unavailable in Nelson, Castlegar, or Trail.
Earlier that week, Eby attended the opening of 10 new beds at the Surrey Pretrial Centre designed for men facing severe mental health and addiction challenges.
Although this program has drawn criticism from drug user advocates who argue it misallocates resources from voluntary services and reinforces stigma, Eby acknowledged that the region needs enhanced care options.
He added that, in the short term, more support should be made available for West Kootenay patients at facilities in Kelowna and Kamloops.
Eby also provided an update on revisions to the Police Act.
Three years after an all-party committee proposed 11 changes addressing issues such as mental-health call responses, First Nations relations, systemic racism, and the potential creation of a new provincial police force to replace the RCMP, work is still in progress.
With additional funding now supporting the Justice Institute of B.C. to train more officers, final recommendations from the Police Act reforms are expected no earlier than late 2026 or 2027.
Eby concluded by emphasizing that while some initiatives have been implemented, further improvements remain necessary to ensure community safety and trust.
