Editorial

Just think — if there were no criminals in the world, there would be no need for police officers to uphold the law and keep our streets safe. What a utopian society that would be.

But sadly that is not the case.

If you think the police only concern themselves with ‘catching the bad guy’, you are grossly misinformed. They do so much more, as recently noted during the 40th annual Police Honours Night that recognized 241 women and men for their bravery and valour.

Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Garry Begg said it well: Police put their lives at risk so the rest of us can live in peace. They often go above and beyond the call of duty to bring sanity back into our lives. Just ask any parent whose child went missing or a family whose lives were disrupted by domestic violence. 

The stories go on and on.

Officers like Blake Cherisnoff and Scott MacDonald from Vancouver rescued a two-year-old child from a violent suspect while facing a life-threatening knife attack. 

Some people in the Columbia Valley may recall when local RCMP Cst. Andrew Henneberry put his life at risk in freezing water four years ago to rescue a trapped woman in the Columbia River.

Many awards of valour were presented at the recent ceremony. For instance, Cst. Phillip Sawatsky rescued a suicidal youth from drowning by entering a lake at night in full uniform. And nobody can forget the many officers who put their lives at substantial risk during a shooting and hostage-taking at a Bank of Montreal in Saanich.

Constable Rhys Garnett risked his life by removing an unconscious driver from a vehicle engulfed in flames. 

Constable Jesse Schellenberg neutralized an armed suspect who attempted to shoot his police dog and then aimed a revolver at him during a high-risk takedown.

Imagine what Cst. Zachary Plensky went through when he restrained a suspect in a remote area of Keremeos without radio contact while injured. And the officers in Merritt who pursued a suspect who continuously shot at them with an automatic rifle as they fled. 

In Trail, Constables Evan Harding and Jason Zilkie risked not going home to their families while responding to a suicidal and mentally ill male attempting to enter  a BC Ambulance station with a firearm.

Needless to say, our world would be mired in anarchy without the police.

Lyonel Doherty, editor