Lethbridge mayor pleads for calm in wake of 'abhorrent' paintball shooting
The mayor of Lethbridge has expressed outrage in the wake of a paintball shooting incident at the city's supervised consumption site, saying this is the time for the community to pull together and demand support for its drug crisis.
"It's really abhorrent and very disappointing that citizens of our city would try to take things into their own hands," Mayor Chris Spearman told the Calgary Homestretch. "I'm pleased to see charges have been laid against the perpetrator of that assault, and it's unfortunate for the clients and unfortunate for the employees. When you see a vehicle come by with a gun barrel protruding out of the window and hearing shots fired, and not knowing, it's terrifying."
Spearman said he's certain the intent was to intimidate the employees and the clients at the supervised consumption site.
"That is very unfortunate. We want people who are addicted to use the supervised consumption site. We want them to be safe and we want to put them on the road to recovery."
Just past midnight last Saturday, a white Dodge Ram pickup truck drove past the ARCHES consumption site at 1016 First Avenue South and fired multiple paintballs at staff and clients, striking a female employee and prompting everyone to drop to the ground and hide behind vehicles.
Police received multiple tips, and on Sunday, arrested Lethbridge resident Jesse John James Bulman, 29. He is charged him with three counts of assault with a weapon, as well as possession of a weapon dangerous to the public and mischief to property.
Bulman is being kept in custody while he awaits a court hearing.
The last thing we need right now is divisiveness in the community. - Mayor Chris Spearman
These incidents come just days after a contentious meeting at Lethbridge City Council, where council defeated a motion to ask the province to stop funding the site. Protesters showed up to both support and oppose the consumption site.
Spearman said he regrets the level of controversy around the much-needed supervised consumption site.
"It was very divisive, and I really regret that the motion was brought forward," he said. "A similar motion was brought forward a year ago and the last thing we need right now is divisiveness in the community. We've been asking for the services we need in our city for five years."
Spearman went on to list the council's efforts to bring services to the community.
"The most important thing is that the community pulls together and says that Lethbridge deserves the same services that are available in Calgary and Edmonton," he said. "We have just as high incidence of drug users on a per capita basis. We deserve the same services. And if we don't get them we are going to have far greater social problems. If that site was ever closed and the drug users —1,300 drug users — went back into the community we would have far more drug debris and we would have huge social issues."
If that site was ever closed and the drug users —1,300 drug users — went back into the community we would have far more drug debris and we would have huge social issues. - Mayor Chris Spearman
Spearman said citizens opposed to the site may not realize that homelessness in the city of Lethbridge has doubled in recent years, directly in relation to the drug crisis.
"It's a big problem, and we need to address the social issues in our city and we need to get a handle on the drug-related issues and they have to be funded," he said.
"We don't have intox in our city. We have a small detox. We don't have supported housing. We don't have significant treatment and we don't have an option for recovery. All of those things have to be funded. And if we had the funding tomorrow it would take most of two years to put them in place," he said, adding there is a lot of confusion and misinformation around the issue of the supervised consumption site.
Lethbridge, he said, is becoming a bigger city, and has all the problems that come with that growth. And this particular issue has been divisive.
"Even now there's additional threats on social media," Spearman said. "I'm really concerned that people are using social media inappropriately. We're actively monitoring social media and many of the pages that are there, and we're looking for inappropriate behaviours, threats, and all of those will be referred to the police for follow up."
He said the executive director of the supervised consumption site is looking at increased security options at ARCHES.
Meanwhile, the province's supervised consumption site review committee is going to be in Lethbridge next week.
"Again it's a potential powderkeg," Spearman said. "And we'll probably have to have security at those meetings. People are very emotional. They're very passionate and we have to make sure that everybody's safe and nobody's threatened."
Having said that, Spearman added he's optimistic.
"It's a very difficult issue for our city and we're working through it, and I'm optimistic that we're going to come to a positive solution."
With files from the Calgary Homestretch.
