Mike on Crime Read Online Free Page B

when he was granted unescorted temporary absences for up to 72 hours of freedom per month. These came despite ongoing concerns about his risk to the public. They were supposed to be for “personal development” and included both family and social time. He claimed he was going to use the time to “participate in community activities such as church services, cultural ceremonies, and shopping centres” during which he would be in the company of his common-law wife. But parole documents show those privileges were revoked in the summer of 2014 after he got caught lying to parole board officials about how he was spending his free time.
    Parole board officials say they received a tip Johnson was going around bragging to others about how he’d pulled the wool over their eyes. Specifically, his absences allowed him to attend weekly Narcotics Anonymous meetings to help deal with outstanding addictions issues. Yet Johnson was skipping out—a fact confirmed when federal officials did a surprise check-in and he was nowhere to be found.
    â€œYou initially acted as if there were no concerns,” the parole board wrote in their latest decision. “Then you claimed you missed your bus and became disoriented.” The parole board members said they could no longer trust him, especially considering his less-than-stellar track record. “You continue to have difficulties following the rules,” they wrote.
    Meanwhile, I still hear occasionally from Beeper’s family. They are, understandably, outraged at the state of the youth justice system, the violent street gang scene in Winnipeg. Unfortunately there have been countless other young victims just like Beeper who have had their lives cut short in the nearly 20 years which have passed. Like him, several were the victim of mistaken identity, gunned down for simply wearing the wrong colours or walking through the wrong neighbourhood.
    In 2013, a veteran staff sergeant in the community relations unit penned a very eloquent column in the Winnipeg Free Press that described how Beeper’s death wasn’t the wake-up call that it should have been:
    â€œUnfortunately, Winnipeg’s gang situation has not improved since then. Aboriginal gangs aren’t the only ones to have taken hold in Winnipeg. But they certainly deserve special attention because of the harm they cause on their ancestral lands and the harm they cause to their communities,” Andy Golebioski wrote.
    â€œIn Winnipeg, several gangs exist, but a few really stand out as having a particularly destructive effect, not just because of their crimes, but because they claim a perverted sense of aboriginal identity. I’m talking about the Manitoba Warriors, the Native Syndicate and the Indian Posse. These gangs make a mockery of the words Indian, native and especially warrior. Their ancestors would be embarrassed.”
    Golebioski called on local Aboriginal leaders to take a stand and work closely with law enforcement. “We, as the police, do our best to combat street gangs. However, it will take much more than just our enforcement and prevention efforts to eliminate their influence. Our entire community must rally around this cause and end it once and for all,” he wrote. “As a police service, our wish is to stand with aboriginal leadership as they publicly and privately condemn these gangs. We just need them to give us that opportunity.”

CHAPTER 2
    A DREAM LIFE SHATTERED
    S ometimes the most incredible stories can be found in places you might not expect. Such as the obituary section. Like most justice reporters, I’ve long made a practice of scanning the daily death notices. As ghoulish as that might sound, they can often be a means of learning more about a victim of crime we might be writing about. Or finding contact information for family members and close friends who might wish to speak out. And they can also alert us to potential newsworthy tales that might