The Work of the Sheriff

The BCSS work at special deployments as well. During the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, the sheriffs were part of an Integrated Security Unit. They work alongside other law enforcement officials with duties such as site assessment and preparation, threat assessments, operational planning, VIP protection detail and general patrol of secure venues, sites and athlete villages.

During long weekends, the BCSS will work alongside the police with the intention of keeping the public orderly and safe.

There are also specialized units in the BCSS. The Integrated Threat Assessment Unit (ITAU) assess threats towards government and public officials as well as work with other law enforcement to gather, assess and manage intelligence. These sheriffs also manage and assist with operational planning. 

Then there is the Protective Operations Unit (POU) is in charge of the protection of individuals who may be in danger due to the nature of their work. Or perhaps these  people have been threatened. The POU will conduct infrastructure and vulnerability assessments, personal protection, transport operations, residential, site, and special event protection.

There are also specialized units to execute outstanding warrants on fugitives from other provincial jurisdictions and, using the Con Air program, these sheriffs will escort the person to the jurisdiction they are wanted in. Of course, the BCSS will return wanted people to jurisdictions in BC too.

The Sheriff Provincial Operations Centre (S.P.O.C.) is the home for the provincial radio communications and dispatch centre for the BCSS. You will also discover that the S.P.O.C. is the centralized hub for Canadian Police Information Centre (C.P.I.C.) operations for the BCSS. S.P.O.C.

The S.P.O.C. is also responsible for the provincial fleet operations (P.F.O.) and manages the Sheriff's Fugitive Return Program planning and deployments.

The fugitive return program is funded by the Civil Forfeiture within the BC Government. Under the program members of BCSS work alongside other B.C. Law Enforcement partners to remove persons with outstanding warrants from other Canadian provinces and return the wanted persons to the province of jurisdictions.

I would like to thank Wikipedia for the information on the BCSS.

I hope you find the beauty around you.

Here Come The Sheriff

If you go back to the year 1857, you will find that Governor James Douglas has appointed the first sheriff for the Colony of Vancouver Island. Andrew Muir was appointed and derived his authority from English Common Law. Muir holds the distinction of being the first sworn Peace Officer in what is now known as British Columbia.

In 1974, the British Columbia Sheriff Service - BCSS - was formed when the New Democratic Party consolidated County Sheriffs. The organization was placed under the Ministry of the Attorney General.

The BCSS are Peace Officers. They receive their authority from the Criminal Code of Canada, the BC Police Act and the BC Sheriff Act. The Sheriffs have legislated authority throughout the province to enforce provincial and federal statutes that refer to the empowerment of Peace Officers.

Our Sheriffs have numerous responsibilities. The BCSS is in charge of such matters as the protection of the Provincial, Supreme and Appeal Courts of BC, planning high security trials, utilizing High Security Teams, Intelligence Unit and assessing threats towards those employed in the Justice system.  The Sheriffs are also in charge of the protection of Judges and Crown Prosecutors, managing detention cells, transportation of prisoners by ground and air, manage and provide protection for Juries. The BCSS serve court-related documents, execute court orders, execute civil and criminal warrants, and assist with coroner's court.

Wow, the sheriffs of the BCSS do a lot of stuff and on Friday I am going to tell you more about the training and other stuff they do. However, right now I want to tell that until Saturday morning at 8 am PST, my eBook On The Right Side, My Story of Survival and Success, will be on sale for 99 cents in the UK and the US.

Here's a blurb to get you interested:

What if you woke one day to find yourself paralysed on one side of your body?

That’s what happened to Karen Magill on June 5, 2000. Nine days later she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and just over three months after that, she had to leave the best job she had ever had. Ms. Magill started on a frightening, confusing journey that was her life now.

Then something interesting happened. Once Karen began adjusting to her new circumstances, coming to terms with the fact that her former life had vanished, she realized that the MS was a gift. Her eyes opened to the possibilities around her.

On The Right Side, My Story of Survival and Success looks at Ms. Magill’s life with MS and the factors in life, which influence her.  This isn’t a how to book on living well with chronic illness, but rather a touching, opinionated, sometimes humorous story on how one person has gone from partial paralysis to jumping to touch low hanging tree leaves.

As long as we aren’t six feet under, we are on the right side and anything is possible. That’s the philosophy Ms. Magill lives by and hopes that readers will come to realize that they too can overcome hardships and live good lives. 

I want to thank Wikipedia for the information on the BCSS.

I hope you find the beauty around you.

Pacific Spirit Park

Located on the Point Grey peninsula on University Endowment Lands in Vancouver is 862 hectares of 'wilderness' known as Pacific Spirit Park. There is 78 kilometres of trails and more than fifty km are multi-use. Walkers mingled with dog walkers, joggers, cyclists and even horses. I visited the park on Saturday and had an enjoyable stroll through nature.

In 1975, BC Parks established 90 hectares as the UBC Endowment Lands Ecological Reserve. Those hectares are designated for forest research and are not open to the public.

Pacific Spirit Park also includes a beach section, which I didn't get to. And when I do go, I probably won't be able to take many photos because it is a clothing optional beach. That is where the famous Wreck Beach is located.

The upland area of the park is typical of cone bearing trees such as Western Hemlock, Western Redcedar, Douglas Fir, Sitka Spruce and other such varieties. Other trees found in Pacific Spirit Park that annually shed their leaves are Red Alder, Bitter Cherry and Black Cottonwood to name a few.

The park is also home to the Point Grey Cliffs and left over from WWII, the Point Grey Towers on the beach level. There is an ancient remnant from the Ice Age, Camosun Bog.

There are several natural fish bearing streams in the park and one restored, artificially stocked salmon bearing stream at Spanish Banks.

This land was logged in the 1890s, 1930s and 1951. Much of the land has been regenerated with a mixture of trees.

The Aboriginal settlement on Pacific Spirit Park was carbon-dated to 3,000 years ago and the land was part of the territory of the Musqueam Nation.

There is so much to see at this park that I didn't get to. I spent two and a half hours wandering around the coastal rain forest, mainly because I got turned around and couldn't find my way out, but there is so much more to see. Next time, I will be smarter and follow the map instead of just walking!

I want to thank the Park Profile website and Wikipedia for the information on the park. And I have a lot more photos so be prepared for a summer of green and trees.

I hope you find the beauty around you.