Drugs use make life in flats a nightmare

DRUG users are making life unbearable for a family in the island’s only tower block, Cour du PARC. Kelly Allen, 25, who lives there with her partner and their two children, has found syringes and broken glass in the hallways and stairwells.

She told police and Housing about it, but the family has not been moved, even though the department has admitted they are in unsuitable accommodation. A man who blames Miss Allen and partner Mark Warren for a child being taken into care has threatened her.

She contacted the police about his behaviour and Housing was informed. She has had problems with another tenant as well.

Housing could not comment on specific cases, but it had been notified of the issues. A Housing spokesman said: ‘The department acknowledges that these flats are not totally suitable for young children, but has to make the best use of the resources available to it until more family houses are freed up when the new units of smaller accommodation being built by the Guernsey Housing Association come on line.’
(from thisisguernsey)

I can never understand how the housing put these people there in the 1st place, the number of States Houses with 3-4 bedrooms occupied with "Old" couples amaze me, about time they got this sorted...

exellent post .

It amazes me that over the past decade Drugs seem more easily available now than ever, it seems that hundreds of people know who are selling the damn things yet there is little sign that the police are actively pursuing them,

I have actually been told by youngsters that its because they are in on it, by which they mean the Police and some in the legal proffession, I find that hard to believe but still can not understand why there are so few arrests when there seems to be drugs all over the place.

We need to get the drugs off the streets and help the addicted get over there addiction.

And maybe its time for cour du parc to finally be pulled down and people rehoused into more suitable acommodation.

Firstly I believed that the Cour du parc flats were meant to be for more elderly residents originally - however it seems that this has dwindled and the cheaper rents has attracted a younger tenant.

I would however state that quite often people seem to stereotype drug users as down and outs who commit crime to feed their habit, and whilst this is still largely true, there is an increasing number of users who can afford their habit either due to well paid parents or a high paid job - look how cocaine use has become labelled as a 'rich and famous' habit.

I would argue Wayside, that the majority of prisoners locally are inside for drug related crime so I don't think that these arrests have fallen away, but what you see on the streets is a largely visible users and not those higher up the scale.

Remember it is the Police who have the mandate to deal with the low level drug users and Customs disrupt the drug syndicates - the facilitators and financiers.

I imagine that any drop in arrests of street users is going to be due to a lack of Police presence and initiative in this area.

Having spoken to someone who has just come out of prison his words were 95% of people in there are in for drugs, I did not ask if they were using or supplying.

My view is hit the small guys hard enough then the ones further up will not be able to find people to sell the drugs and will either have to deal them selves or pack it in.

You have to get the small guys out of the loop but cant lock everyone up for years, the sentances should be short spell in prison so they know what its like, with a suspended longer sentance should they re offend, this would not overcrowd the prison for years. and be a warning that if caught again they face a long spell away.

Also a reward system for people who give evidence that gets the bigger players locked up, but then we come accross the point I said before about who some think are involed, how do you know you can trust the person your giving the information too.

A few weekends of undercover young police from outside the island should get a lot of results.

allowing it to go on as it is will just make it worse every year until it gets out of control.

Yes it is an ongoing thing.We do have problems with drugs,I do know this and are aware of it
But do the police offer enough protection to those who bring the dealer to justice?

wayside wrote:My view is hit the small guys hard enough then the ones further up will not be able to find people to sell the drugs and will either have to deal them selves or pack it in.

You have to get the small guys out of the loop but cant lock everyone up for years, the sentances should be short spell in prison so they know what its like, with a suspended longer sentance should they re offend, this would not overcrowd the prison for years. and be a warning that if caught again they face a long spell away.

I completely disagree Wayside. Removing street level dealers would do absolutely nothing to reduce the level of drugs in the island. As soon as you remove one, there are always several more waiting to take their place and earn 'easy money'.

The reason targetting the facilitators and financiers works is because it cuts that link to the original supply into the island. As we are talking about organised crime, it takes people with large amounts of money and organisation (usually UK based) to get these importations in. The locals are generally only mules who supply users further down the chain - however the higher local links are also taken out as they are then the next in line within the island who continue the process.

The gauge of success in reducing drug availability in the island is measured by street value - the more available, the lower the price and obviously the opposite is also true. When drugs are scarce, the price soars - unfortunately this also means that people see it as an opportunity for making even more money from the same transaction, so you end up with a vicious circle.

[quote="MarkyD

I completely disagree Wayside. Removing street level dealers would do absolutely nothing to reduce the level of drugs in the island. As soon as you remove one, there are always several more waiting to take their place and earn 'easy money'.

Then keep catching them until they realise its not worth taking the chance there is not an infinite amount of people in Guernsey willing to sell drugs.

if u have users you have dealers and dealers make users and users make dealers.....it goes on and on.........it's all about money. chop the head off the snake amd treat those bitten by the snake and half the battle is won.

Just because its a hard job, does not meen it should not be tried, and in a small place like Guernsey it should be achievable, it just need our Customs, Police and the Courts to get together and hit it hard for a few months.

Wayside, if only it were that simple.

Send a drug dog into the clubs and pubs for a few nights and they will soon get the message that it not only would not be a good idea to be selling but buying as well as they wont want to be caught with anything on them.

There does not seem to be anything done (as far as I know) just to keep them on their guard and possibly put some off selling.

I personally dont think canabis is a problem anyway, my view has always been if you smoke and dring booze you may as well have a joint and it the same thing.

The real drugs are the ones we need to sort out and not knowing much about all these parties you are on about I will have to bow to your expierience but I am sure there are ways of busting them as well.

600 heroin users = over 1%, that seems a lot to me, are there figures to suport that?

it as a figure quoted in the local paper and you musr believe the local don't you. I would agree with that figure but those who think Gsy's only drug problem is a few people haveing a few joints here and there then they should get out more.