A roundtable discussion was held on Thursday (July 24) to examine the evolving challenges impacting public safety in St. Thomas and Aylmer.In attendance were St. Thomas Police Chief Marc Roskamp, Aylmer Police Chief Kyle Johnstone, along with deputy chiefs from both services and Elgin-St. Thomas-London South MP Andrew Lawton and Brantford-Brant MP Larry Brock.
The two Conservative MPs are members of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights.
Front and centre was the growing concern over repeat offenders, a matter well documented in both municipalities.
The need was expressed for stronger accountability to curb chronic offending and reduce the burden on victims and frontline responders.
“This isn’t just a policing issue,” stressed Chief Roskamp, “it’s a community issue. When a small number of individuals are responsible for a high volume of crime, we must take a coordinated approach that spans the justice system, healthcare and social supports.”
In summary, the dialogue recognized the multi-sectoral nature of the challenge, involving not only police and the courts, but also corrections, mental health services and community organizations.
We had the opportunity to speak with both of the elected representatives following the roundtable.
MP Brock advised that he has started a petition he is hoping will go viral.
“I’m now at about 40,000 signatures from Canadians right across this country. I’m on a cross-country tour advocating for people to sign this petition. My goal is to get one million Canadians to sign my petition.”
Brock continued, “I want to be in a position to come back to Parliament in September and say to the government, for the last three years, you have refused to listen to the calls for bail reform from law enforcement, from chiefs of police, from presidents of law associations, of police associations, of premiers of every province and territory, mayors from small, medium, large communities, victim advocacy groups, community groups, and Canadians.
“You’ve turned down their pleas for bail reform. How are you going to turn down now a million plus Canadians who are demanding that you do your job, that Number 1 job to keep us safe?
“People make promises to judges each and every day in this country, and it’s meaningless because by and large, these prolific repeat offenders know how to game the system, know that there’s very little enforcement, or if there is enforcement and they get re-arrested again, they’re going to get popped out again . . .”
“So I’m hoping the government finally wakes up and says, okay, the time has come. We have to put a balance again in the criminal justice system where the needs of the community and the protection of the victim are on the same level playing field as the rights of the accused and the protections offered under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
“That’s how life existed pre-2019. It doesn’t exist today.”
Situations like the shooting death on Dec. 27, 2022, of OPP Const. Grzegorz Pierzchala while responding to a vehicle in a ditch near Hagersville.
Randall McKenzie and Brandi Stewart-Sperry were both found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.
McKenzie had been denied bail on unrelated assault and weapons charges months before the shooting, but was released after a review. A warrant for his arrest was issued after he failed to show up for a court date, some time before Pierzchala’s killing.
Brock pointed out, “That person breached (their conditions) the very next day after he was released from Superior Court. He was released in my jurisdiction in Brantford by a Superior Court judge.
“His criminal record was very related, very consistent in terms of the convictions and the breaches of bail. He was detained, sat in custody for a couple of months, decided he wanted a bail review, which accused people are entitled to do, went in front of a Superior Court judge, and that particular judge thought that there were circumstances in the plan for release, which included complete house arrest with his mother, would be sufficient to hold him accountable and to keep the community safe.
“Everyone wants to be safe. Everyone wants to make the decision to walk downtown at all hours of the night. They want to make that decision to buy that car of their dreams and leave it in their driveway and wake up in the morning and seeing that same car in the driveway not being vandalized or stolen.”
“He breached in less than 24 hours and then was on the lam for a couple of months, incurring charges, new charges in Hamilton. There was a warrant for his arrest, new charges in the Niagara region, another warrant for his arrest, found himself in a stolen vehicle with a female also wanted by the police for outstanding charges and breaches, fully armed, and that poor officer who did his job as any officer would, coming to the aid of a vehicle in distress, paid for it by his life.”
Brock continued, “People make promises to judges each and every day in this country, and it’s meaningless because by and large, these prolific repeat offenders know how to game the system, know that there’s very little enforcement, or if there is enforcement and they get re-arrested again, they’re going to get popped out again, they’re going to get more bail, and eventually they’re going to have to pay the piper and either get a trial, plead guilty, or be found guilty at trial, and the consequences of sentencing do not have the desired deterrent impact anymore.”
Referencing the roundtable with the two police chiefs, MP Lawton advised, “One of the concerns that was raised is that these non-violent crimes are often precursors to violent crimes. And even the fire down at the Acacia Block, where again someone who was on bail for other serious charges burned this building down, that could have very easily been a fatal fire with the Indwell building next door, not to mention other people downtown.
“So property crimes are very serious, and when we’re talking about chronic criminality, the police were sharing that these are the people who, sure, they’re out on bail for a property offence, but the next time they’re arrested, it is for assault or assaulting a police officer.”
So realistically, will a petition begin to move the needle?
“I’m optimistic, okay, I’m also a realist,” admitted Brock. “Andrew and I, on a regular and daily basis, on our social media, also in the House of Commons, we bring this to the attention of the government. It falls on deaf ears.
” I don’t think they’re going to move the needle sufficiently enough despite their promises to bring meaningful bail reform. They promised that towards the latter end of our spring session that something was going to be introduced in the fall.
“The nice thing about politicians is that we can walk and chew gum at the same time, and there was nothing preventing our justice minister or our public safety minister from introducing legislation this summer.”
He continued, “Everyone wants to be safe. Everyone wants to make the decision to walk downtown at all hours of the night. They want to make that decision to buy that car of their dreams and leave it in their driveway and wake up in the morning, and seeing that same car in the driveway not being vandalized or stolen.
“They want to make that decision to purchase a nice home and acquire nice assets and go to bed not worrying that there’s going to be some rampant individuals breaking into their home, threatening them with their lives if they don’t release certain assets.”
Brock summarized by stressing to Premier Mark Carney and the Liberal government that they need to “Accept responsibility where you have a sphere of influence, and that is federal legislation. What you’ve created is the perfect storm in 2019 to allow our criminal justice system to be unbalanced. That’s what we need to address.”
Lawton noted, “Larry and I and our two colleagues put out a letter demanding a recall of the committee so that we can actually deal with some of these bail issues that a lot of us were elected to deal with. So we’re hoping to have the committee recalled in the summer, and break time’s over.
The petition can be found at http://www.larrybrockmp.ca/bail-reform-petition
THE OPENING OF A WELCOMING SPACE
After a years-long journey, residents of St. Thomas and Elgin now have access to a hospice providing care beyond beds.
This week, the stunningly beautiful and painstakingly detailed Barrie Family Hospice of Elgin officially opened.
From the glass waterfall inside to the fire pit outside, surrounded by Muskoka chairs, the facility truly deserves to be known as The Cottage.
At the official opening yesterday (Friday), we spoke with Executive Director Brenda Fleming about the new chapter in compassionate, end-of-life care for families in St. Thomas and Elgin.
“Hospice has been a vision for a decade or longer,” she observed. “And to have all of this come to fruition, thanks to the generous support of the community, and to be able to open our doors earlier this week and to make an impact on the community has been absolutely incredible.
“It’s been very emotional for many of us who were involved, and our hearts are absolutely full.
Fleming stressed this is a facility for the community, and its existence has been generously supported by the community.
“We’ve tried to, in a very respectful way, make sure that everyone who comes through these doors knows that this is a community resource that has been developed. It’s been developed by the community for the community.“And we are community members who are caring for each other within these walls. And that feeling and that wraparound, even our visual identity of the Barrie Family Hospice of Elgin, is that wraparound heart.
“And we really want people to feel that when they come through our doors, that the community is wrapping their arms around them and supporting them at the most vulnerable time of their lives.”
We asked Fleming to elaborate on The Cottage identity.
“Cottages are places where life slows down, where families come together, where those little things matter the most. And that’s exactly what we want to have here. We want those moments to matter. We want people to slow down and take time for life at life’s end and to create those magical memories with their family members.”
One thing that did not slow down was the rapid construction period.
“Yes. From the time the shovels went into the ground until we moved into the facility, it was approximately a year, just over a year, probably about 13 or 14 months.
“But years and years of design and planning went into the construction of this facility. Years and years of fundraising and garnering community support to make this a reality.
“It was really important for us that The Cottage not have that institutional feel. Care does happen here. That is absolutely part of the services we offer, but it’s so much more than care. It’s that spiritual connection. It’s that psycho-social support. It’s that grief and bereavement support. It’s that feeling of being supported and that feeling of safety, that they’re in a safe space.
“And we wanted to make sure that that came through in absolutely every design choice and in absolutely every aspect of the care that we deliver.”
As for staffing, approximately 40 individuals make up the administrative and clinical care teams.
“We do have registered nurses, registered practical nurses, PSWs, housekeeping, food services, chefs, as well as our administrative and fundraising development teams.”
Bolstered by an extensive army of volunteers.
“Hospices are largely volunteer-run organizations. When all of our services and programming are up and running, we anticipate we’re probably going to have a need for approximately 200 volunteers in areas such as:
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Reception
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Direct service volunteers who will work alongside the nurses and PSWs, delivering care
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Things like gardening and additional housekeeping
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Fundraising, which will continue to be a very, very important part of our future.
If you would like to volunteer, you can visit their website, www.elginhospice.com
For Laura Sherwood, Director of Hospice Partnerships with St. Joseph’s Health Care in London, The Cottage is nothing short of transformational for the community.
“So there couldn’t be any bigger joy than to be at a point where watching all of the hard work, support, and generosity of our community come together to now be at a place where we get to open doors and care for families of our community at the very end of life.
“And so to stand here in The Cottage today, to be a part of a really unique health care facility that is leading the way in hospice end-of-life care, it is a privilege and an honour to be here.”
Sherwood continued, “So, you know, our whole cottage design, we often get questions saying, well, who came up with that? Was that the designers? Was it architects? And really, the heart of the cottage came from our community.
“Our urban-rural community said that for them, life in the community was reflected as being at a port, being on a beach, was being in the rural settings. It was about gathering and coming together. It was about celebrating food. All of those pieces and parts of what define life in Elgin county have been reflected in this cottage-like design.
“And so this is not something that is just pretty or looks nice. It really has the community at the heart of it. And that’s why we’re so excited to see that come to life.”
We had to know more about the indoor waterfall, or more accurately water wall.
“It was intentionally designed there to reflect all of the waterfront that is in our community. For many people, water is about tranquillity. It is about peace. And also about fun and life, right? And so the water part also reminds us that the flow of life continues even after death.
“And so the journey, we recognize, is so tough for families. But if they know their loved ones will be well cared for after they die, it brings tremendous reassurance that life will continue to flow. And we are here for them, whether it’s at the beginning, the middle, or the end.”
While some may view the hospice as end-of-life care, is it not a celebration of life?
Sherwood observed, “So when we started this project, it was not just about the end-of-life piece and building beds. That is one important part of hospice care. But we saw an opportunity in this community, being that we’re the last in the region to get a hospice, to do things differently. And we believed wholeheartedly that care can happen earlier on that journey.
“Some will come in earlier to access good pain and symptom management. Some will come in for a short stay. Some will come in and receive grief and bereavement support for losing a loved one. And that loved one maybe never came to hospice at all.
“And so care happens in many different places and parts of our building and on that journey. And so it really is about honouring life in our community. Death is just a fraction. It’s just a moment. But here at hospice, it’s all about creating space for life and honouring and celebrating the individual. And it’s how they define what their care should and could look like here at hospice.”
For MPP Rob Flack, the road to hospice care in this community was an eye-opener.
“When they first came to see me, I was shocked. I was just a newly minted MPP. I didn’t realize there was no hospice. And so when they showed me the art of sketches and they showed me the renderings, and you know, they were well underway on fundraising.
“But they needed some help eventually. So we went to work right away, and this place sells itself in terms of the need and obviously the demand.”
Throughout the facility, you can’t help but notice names painted on the walls, families who made hospice possible: Yurek, Barrie, Tarry and Nicli, to name but a few.
Flack picked up on that point.
“It’s really a proud moment when you see the names on the walls. The family names. The walls and the pictures. It is truly elegant.
“I love the art gallery in front here. Every picture there is from Elgin. So this is a true representation of the beauty and the wonder and the splendidness of Elgin.”
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WORTH NOTING
Southwestern Public Health advised this week it will no longer present its weekly measles update, citing a sharp drop-off in cases.
The measles status dashboard made its debut in April 2025 to alert the community as to the number of cases in the health unit region, along with related data.
A word of caution, however.
“The decision to end our local measles dashboard does not mean this local outbreak has ended,” advised Dr. Ninh Tran, Medical Officer of Health.
“The risk of measles persists for those who are susceptible. Please continue to be vigilant in preventing measles and protecting yourselves and loved ones through vaccination.”
Ongoing measles information and data can be found at Public Health Ontario’s measles webpage.
FOR THE CALENDAR
The MP/MPP Luncheon is this coming Monday at the CASO station. Hosted by the St. Thomas & District Chamber of Commerce, we understand registration is closed; however, we will report on the event next week in this space.
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And a reminder, I can be heard weekday afternoons as news anchor and reporter on 94.1 myFM in St. Thomas. As always, your comments and input are appreciated.
