Latest News

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Missing B.C. women were not even seen

By: Editorial

Posted: 12/19/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 | Last Modified: 12/19/2012 9:53 AM | Updates

Enlarge Image

(DALE CUMMINGS )

Related Items

Articles
- 'What if you were made to feel invisible?'

British Columbia had a history of women going missing, some turning up dead, long before police finally nabbed Robert Willy Pickton in 2002 for the murder of women picked off the streets of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Indeed, reviews had been launched of many who had gone missing, back to 1985. And in the late 1990s, Vancouver police officers were ringing alarm bells about the rising number of women going missing and the mounting suspicion a serial killer was at work.

But none of that made a difference in the face of a prevailing belief that those reported missing, women of similar profile -- welfare reliance, drug abuse, sex trade work and frequently aboriginal -- were likely just runaways, transients or evading police.

Commissioner Wally Oppal, in his report of the inquiry into women who went missing from the East Side between 1997 and 2002, said that was the core problem. In fact, the women weren't transients. They were residents and valued members of the impoverished neighbourhood where they eked out their lives.

Further, they were vulnerable and at high risk. That should have caused police to investigate more seriously. Instead, among the 3,000 missing persons reports made to Vancouver police annually, these cases had to jump a further hurdle -- were they really missing? -- before they were taken seriously.

There existed a systemic bias, Mr. Oppal said, against sex trade workers, with police conflating their individuals identities with work they did to survive. "The pattern of predatory violence was clear and should have been met with a swift and severe response by accountable and professional institutions, but it was not."

There were officers who made convincing arguments that the missing women weren't just wandering off, but were the victims of foul play. Among them was a beat cop who well knew the East Side and wrote a memo that he knew 75 per cent of the women who went missing. But this was met with intransigence from higher-ups. Police are loath to contemplate a serial murderer is in the midst. It is not illegal for people to go missing and a "no body, no crime" operating belief infected the leadership.

Mr. Oppal underscored that police attitudes were merely a reflection of social attitudes, not a characteristic unique to police. It was not an overt, intentional bias, but a stereotype of women who worked the Eastside, and it influenced their thinking.

There were many errors made at various points, most obviously when charges of attempted murder against Pickton in 1997 were stayed because the woman he picked up was not regarded as a reliable witness. The commissioner recommended that such vulnerable witnesses receive special handling, including drug treatment, to prepare them for trial.

Mr. Oppal blamed no individual because the problem was systemic. He dismissed categorically without basis assertions that there had been a police conspiracy and coverup. No, he noted, the missing women received little attention because they were marginalized.

This conclusion is not unique to Vancouver, but is relevant across Canada -- certainly to Winnipeg -- where 5,000 persons are reported missing each year. Many of them fit the profiles of the women who disappeared in Vancouver.

Mr. Oppal wrote that attitudes must change inside police departments and throughout society. As with the beat cop who worried that foul play had taken the lives of the women he knew in Vancouver's impoverished Eastside, this will require police departments and their vulnerable communities to trust and work together.

That is important to front-line officers and investigators, but the commission's work found that greater sensitivity will be futile if police managers and executives cling to their biases and stereotypes. A system-wide change in attitudes is required.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 19, 2012 A10

History

Updated on Wednesday, December 19, 2012 at 9:53 AM CST: corrects typos

Fact Check

Have you found an error, or know of something we’ve missed in one of our stories? Please use the form below and let us know.

* Required

In which story did you find the error? *
Please post the headline of the story or the title of the video with the error.
What was the error? *
Please post exactly what was wrong with the story.
What should we have written?
Please indicate your source for the correct information.
Who else should we interview to improve this story?
Please include any contact information you may have.
Can we contact you in the future for advice on stories about this topic?
Yes

No
First Name: *
Last Name: *
E–mail Address: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Phone: *
This will only be used to contact you if we have a question about your submission, it will not be used to identify you or be published.
Colour:
Are you blue? If you can see this, leave it blank and get some CSS support.
Enter the words that you see: * This is to prevent our forms from being filled out automatically.
You have failed to correctly identify the words in the box above. Please try again.

More Latest News

Undock

You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.

Have Your Say

New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

Have Your Say

Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?

Have Your Say

Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?

The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.