Vancouver, B.C. Murders

[Mills75]

I saw a disturbing news segment on tonight about a case involving the murder of prostitutes working on the east side of Vacouver, B.C. It seems that for years young ladies who were poor and addicted to various substances were preyed upon and came up missing in this area and some of the family members of the missing women begged police there to investigate the disappearances as homicides but the B.C. police said that they had no evidence to investigate on this basis and kept the women in the category of missing persons.the number of missing women grew to about twenty seven and still nothing was done until affluent homes were robbed on the west side of Vancouver and the police posted a 100,000 dollar reward for that person.Than an outcry began from east side family members of the missing women for a reward in the same amount for leads into the missing women.

The Vancouver police finally acted and made the same amount of dollars avaliable to people with tips into the missing women's case.Years earlier family members walking the streets investigating on their own behalf uncovered tips about a pig farmer who was known to be around the east side and the prostitutes.As it turns out the things the family members found out and their hunches and tips about this farmer that Vancouver police ingnored earlier turned out to be soild.The royal mounted police were called into the case and they dug at the farm site and recovered many scattered remains of humans that later turned out to be many of the missing prostitutes when confirmed by D.N.A. testing.This was a very shocking story and sad because the women and the families of the women seemed to be ingnored and almost disposible because they were poor and on the wrong side of town and the case was neglected for years allowing probably many more women who could have been saved to become victims of this predator.Just wondered what people on here thought of this case and if they saw it on t.v. and maybe things they would recommend for women to be safer when on the streets and alternatives solutions for them in life..what should B.C. do to remedy this problem they have on the east side?

Jeff

[Dana Sheets]

Sex workers have been seen as an untouchable class for centuries. It isn't unheard of for more affluent areas to receive better police protection and services than disadvantaged areas.

The folks on the East side could consider setting up a neighborhood watch program, reaching out to city officials to build the business plan for the area and attract new investments. However these kind of gentrification efforts often result in the displacement of the very people who sought to improve their quality of life.

No easy answers in tough situations.

Dana