Coaxed to surrender a safe Liberal seat in Vancouver-Fraserview to run in Delta South at the request of Premier Gordon Campbell, Oppal admitted following his 32-vote defeat on May 12 that there is “an intense amount of dislike for the [B.C. Liberal] government . . . and a bitter feeling we just didn’t listen [in Delta South].”
While that riding may have tuned out the Grits and Oppal, it was less than a dozen years ago when everyone in Abbotsford wanted to hear every word Oppal had to say.
While that riding may have tuned out the Grits and Oppal, it was less than a dozen years ago when everyone in Abbotsford wanted to hear every word Oppal had to say.
On Oct. 16, 1997, in New Westminster Supreme Court, Justice Oppal found Terry Driver – a.k.a. the Abbotsford Killer – guilty of murdering Tanya Smith, and guilty of attempted murder of her friend Misty Cockerill.
That unforgettable horror story, which played out for two years in this community, is now the subject of a fascinating book – Through the Valley of the Shadow – authored by retired and respected police officer Rod Gehl, who worked on the high-profile case.
That unforgettable horror story, which played out for two years in this community, is now the subject of a fascinating book – Through the Valley of the Shadow – authored by retired and respected police officer Rod Gehl, who worked on the high-profile case.
For those who lived here through the manhunt, you will recall a time when real fear gripped the community. While drugs and gangsters have tarnished the peaceful, Bible Belt image over
the past decade, nobody stayed indoors because of the Bacons or Johals – yet as Gehl reminds us in his book, streets were deserted and Halloween was almost a non-event while police played their “cat-and-louse” game with Driver.
the past decade, nobody stayed indoors because of the Bacons or Johals – yet as Gehl reminds us in his book, streets were deserted and Halloween was almost a non-event while police played their “cat-and-louse” game with Driver.
In this quick-fix day and age where we’re used to seeing CSI: Miami wrap up a case in under an hour and still leave time for a few cheesy one-liners from Horatio Caine, Gehl does a great job illustrating how tough the case was and how Driver’s ego eventually did him in. The killer’s voice – recorded by 911 and later played on radio stations – was recognized by his
mother, who turned him in.
mother, who turned him in.
Few things in the book I didn’t know despite covering the case: Driver attended Smith’s funeral with his two children; lawyer G. Jack Harris advised Driver not to offer fingerprints to police, but the killer figured he hadn’t left any DNA in his footsteps and went ahead with the
incriminating evidence; the police working on the case paid for a new headstone for Smith after Driver defaced the original; and Driver’s mother and brother were eventually given the $10,000 reward money for turning him in.
While I wondered how Driver could leave home and do his evil deeds and taunt police via phone calls without his wife ever becoming suspicious, the book explains how Driver had a “scanner chasing” habit that was deemed to be “normal” behaviour by his family.
In fact, on Friday the 13th (October, 1995) when Driver killed Smith, he had reported a stolen bike to police earlier in the evening in one of his many cruises around the city.
incriminating evidence; the police working on the case paid for a new headstone for Smith after Driver defaced the original; and Driver’s mother and brother were eventually given the $10,000 reward money for turning him in.
While I wondered how Driver could leave home and do his evil deeds and taunt police via phone calls without his wife ever becoming suspicious, the book explains how Driver had a “scanner chasing” habit that was deemed to be “normal” behaviour by his family.
In fact, on Friday the 13th (October, 1995) when Driver killed Smith, he had reported a stolen bike to police earlier in the evening in one of his many cruises around the city.
Gehl’s book gives props to those who worked around the clock and to the co-operation between the law enforcement agencies that came together during the city’s darkest days.
Not only will proceeds from the book go to victims of crime, but we learn that Cockerill has become a healthy mother, an inspiring survivor and someone who helps victims in this community repair their damaged lives.
The disturbing book also reminds us that our police, even with limited resources, are still smarter than the crooks – and the good ones aren’t afraid of working, fighting or dying to keep it that way.
Just ask Terry Driver.
No comments:
Post a Comment