Killings ignite political battle

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This article was published 25/10/2010 (5187 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg’s two top mayoral candidates are accusing each other of failing the North End in the wake of a weekend shooting spree that garnered national attention.

Mayor Sam Katz and challenger Judy Wasylycia-Leis traded barbs Monday about each other’s record with respect to preventing crime in Winnipeg’s North End, where shootings on Saturday left two dead and one injured.

Katz accused his opponent of turning a blind eye to public safety when she served as the NDP MP for Winnipeg North, while Wasylycia-Leis accused the incumbent mayor of failing to respond to her own concerns during his time in office.

At his Notre Dame Avenue campaign headquarters, Katz said he has effectively reduced crime in Winnipeg by campaigning for tougher federal laws. He also heralded the success of Winnipeg’s auto-theft reduction strategy. Clad in a Winnipeg Police Association jacket, Katz also claimed Wasylycia-Leis was never interested in crime when she was the NDP MP for Winnipeg North.

“She never asked about crime in any way, shape or form,” said Katz, claiming Wasylycia-Leis never called him or Winnipeg police Chief Keith McCaskill about crime in the North End.

Wasylycia-Leis called Katz’s statement “patently false” and said Katz refused to respond to her correspondence about problems in the North End.

She said she attended “numerous gatherings” with the police chief, especially in the William Whyte area. She also accused Katz of playing politics on a day when people are grieving in the North End.

“He shouldn’t be playing games and making false accusations,” she said.

Earlier in the day, Wasylycia-Leis attended a police media briefing outside the Indian and Métis Friendship Centre. She called the triple shooting “a wake-up call” to pay attention to an urgent problem and announced a vigil for the shooting victims was slated to be held at the corner of Robinson Street and Dufferin Avenue Monday afternoon.

Wasylycia-Leis insisted she is not playing politics herself.

She said she spent the past two days in the North End, meeting with residents and playing a co-ordinating role in their response to the tragedy.

“That’s not playing politics, that’s being there on hand, at ground zero, where people are living in fear,” she said.

Katz also spent time in the neighbourhood.

North End residents want to see more police — and they like his plans to hire 58 more officers next year, he said. Earlier in the campaign, Katz pledged to hire officers to work in patrol cars, on the street and as part of a street-gang unit modelled on the auto-theft unit.

Wasylycia-Leis also said she supports more police but did not quantify a number.

She pledged to expand a community watch program that’s been successful in North Point Douglas.

Both Katz and Wasylycia-Leis implored the public to give police time to solve the shootings.

Meanwhile, about 200 people turned out for a vigil for the victims’ families at the Indian & Métis Friendship Centre on Monday night.

The majority in attendance were Wasylycia-Leis supporters and leaders from local community groups.

“We want to put an end to this embarrassment of being called the Violence Capital of Canada,” Wasylycia-Leis said. Family Services and Housing Minister Gord Mackintosh said the criminals have won if parents keep their children home on Halloween this weekend.

“We cannot allow little ones going out in fear,” he said.

 

— with file from Bill Redekop

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