Inuvik (Nov 27/06) - Justice department investigators would have the power to put homes under surveillance, question neighbours and eventually evict people suspected of illegal activity under proposed legislation.

The Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act (SCAN) was introduced to Delta residents Nov. 22 at a public meeting in Inuvik.

Jeff Mackey, right, a senior policy advisor with NWT department of Justice, listens as citizens debate proposed Safer Community and Neighbourhoods Act (SCAN) legislation. - Philippe Morin/NNSL photo How it works Step one A citizen believes their community or neighbourhood is being negatively affected by activities on or near a property. The concerned citizen makes a confidential complaint to the director of community operations. Step two The director conducts an investigation to determine the validity of a complaint. If a complaint is determined to be frivolous, the director may not act on the complaint. All attempts will be made to resolve the matter informally and the director may also send a warning letter to the property's owner, its occupant or others deemed appropriate. Step three If the complaint has validity, and activities occurring on the property pose an immediate threat to the health, safety and security of the community or neighbourhood, the director has the ability to seek a Community Safety Order from the court. Step four The court has the authority to issue orders to vacate a property, terminate a lease agreement, or close a property for up to 90 days. Before the closure date, the owner or occupant may apply to court to have it set aside the order, and the court may set aside the order if criminal activities have ceased, or vary the order if it is necessary the property be used again. Step five Once the closure order is issued, the director can enter the property without the owner or occupant's consent to close the property. Measures can include ordering all the occupants of the property to leave immediately, attaching a lock or security device, erecting a fence, terminating utilities services and making interior/exterior alterations to the property so it is not a hazard while closed. Step six The director is not responsible for any costs incurred. These are to be covered by the occupant or owner of the property in question. The property occupant or owner may appeal the costs within 30 days of receipt.

Fifteen people attended the meeting, and a nearly three-hour debate ensued about the powers it would give the Department of Justice.

"I am actually quite alarmed about this," said Alana Mero, from Inuvik.

"There seems to be very few checks and balances."

Others thought the SCAN might be a good way to help control drug dealing, prostitution and bootlegging.

Similar laws are already in place in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Yukon.

"We have struggled in the community for years," said a woman from Fort McPherson, who did not wish to be named. "There is bootlegging, drug dealing and our hands our tied. People are not willing to have charges laid."

Another man said he liked the idea of full-time plainclothes property investigators, since illegal activity will often stop when police come around.

As residents and government officials discussed the pros and cons of the new powers, Staff Sgt. Sidney Gray of the Inuvik RCMP said he might welcome the SCAN.

He said the current legal process - wherein each individual person must be charged and proven guilty and charged in a court of law - often does not solve the problem of transient people who come and go in crime dens.

"Most of the time it's a long, drawn-out process so you don't get a quick reaction," he said.

He also said the RCMP was often unable to gather enough evidence to convict every single person in a problem building like a suspected crack house - to the Criminal Code standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt."

Under the proposed legislation, anonymous callers could file complaints about their neighbours, and a pair of investigators would fly to a community to gather evidence.

These investigators would work with the Department of Justice, and would therefore work within the Civil Code, which requires only a balance of probability.

If illegal activity is found, the occupants of a home could be evicted.

While no budget has yet been proposed for the measure, Jeff Mackey, senior policy advisor with NWT department of Justice, said investigators could potentially be flown to small communities for extended stake-outs.

The Yukon has budgeted $350,000 to get the program going and about $300,000 a year to operate.

Guenther Laube, NWT resource development impacts advisor, said the investigators would likely be retired police officers with a background in drug or sex crime investigation.

Laube said they would have the right to videotape homes, monitor people's movements, interview neighbours and possibly use undercover identities.

Another part of the SCAN legislation, which deals with fortified buildings, might allow access inside any building, to check for fortifications.

With information gathered, the SCAN investigators could then share findings with police.

In a press release, Justice Minister Brendan Bell praised SCAN as a way to combat bootlegging and crack houses.

However, it was admitted the program would breach spaces not allowed by current law, such as undercover police videotaping private homes.

"The proposed Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act would create a new civil process that would be quicker, easier and focused on stopping the activities rather than arresting individuals," wrote Bell.

"This type of enforcement is not possible under existing NWT laws."

By the letter of the law, it is clear the SCAN program represents a shift in the NWT's law enforcement.

However, David Horn, the director Saskatchewan's SCAN program, said it's a change that is needed for neighbourhoods to be cleaned up.

"There has to be somewhat of a trust in the system and your investigators, and the way they are conducting themselves and that they are not going to abuse that (power)," he said.

- With files from Jason Unrau