By Lowell Jordan
I lost a close personal friend. Someone I grew up with since elementary school. His name was Colin Hill and he was shot and killed on July 12, protecting his family during a break-in at their Cloverdale home.
Twenty-two-year-old Khouri Lamar Green, who has an extensive criminal record and was on probation, has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with Colin’s death and will next appear in court on Sept 14.
According to the records, he has been charged over the years with break and enter, resisting police, possession of stolen property, and failing to comply with a court sentence.
Does anyone out there ever get tired of the line “He was well known to police?”
Can there be any greater action that causes outrage to society than to break into a man’s home in the dead of night and take his life in the presence of his family? This is a clear case of a young man who has no value for human life, and if as police say he tried to break into an apartment in Burnaby a couple of hours after Colin was killed – clearly indicating he has no remorse for this sick crime – no amount of prison time will not be good enough for this guy.
I really don’t think crime is just in Surrey. We have seen acts of violence in the Lower Mainland. But I think any kind of violence that is so needless and senseless, we have to take a strong look at the justice system. One does have to question the whole entire system and we have to ask serious questions about prolific offenders.
Does anyone out there ever get tired of the line “He was well known to police?”
I believe Canadians have less confidence in some functions of the courts and corrections system, particularly sentencing practices, providing justice quickly, rehabilitating offenders and releasing the right offenders at the right time.
As people in Surrey grieve over yet another tragedy, local politicians are calling for more RCMP officers to be put on the streets. One hundred have been promised – but so far only six are in place.
Let’s make crime prevention an important issue and topic. I have connected to some politicians and they have assured me that they have “redoubled” their efforts to eliminate crime. Let’s be sure they live up to that.
Our current Surrey Mayor is advocating for a better process federally in dealing with prolific offenders and she will need our support.
Nothing was more important to Colin than his family and even in death he has taught me about life. His final lesson was to show that you would do anything for the people you love, and that is exactly what he did.
Rest in peace my dear friend, my hero.
Colin with Lowell and his wife, Ester.
