Detainee releases raise concerns over Chinatown being used as a ‘dumping ground’
Residents and business leaders in Edmonton's Chinatown are protesting the practice of correctional services dropping off released detainees in their neighborhood. Community members argue that these late-night releases occur when social services are closed, exacerbating existing social disorder in the area.
Why it matters
It raises critical questions about the intersection of criminal justice policy, urban planning, and the safety of vulnerable inner-city communities.
People living and working in Edmonton’s Chinatown are speaking out over how people leaving correctional custody are being released into the inner city neighbourhood.
It comes after Global News obtained surveillance video showing several people getting out of corrections transport vans at different locations in the area north of downtown, where much of the city’s social services and homeless supports are concentrated.
Community leaders say the concern is not that people are being released from custody, but where and how those releases are happening — particularly when social service providers are closed.
One incident happened late Friday night near Kim Fat Market near 99 Street and 107 Avenue.
Kathryn Luu, interim executive director of the Chinatown Business Association, provided Global News with security footage showing a white corrections transport van pulling up near the business shortly before 10 p.m. Friday.
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