RICHARD ALLEN SCOTT - Through the Years

RICHARD ALLEN SCOTT
THROUGH THE YEARS
A few suicides, by shotgun to the head, and hanging...rather grizzly. Also, there were a lot of
sudden deaths to attend, given what I found to be quite an aging community. I was also
responsible for ‘community relations’ in one particular zone that had a continuing problem with
errant youth. Had to set up a multitude of community meetings to try and ease the tensions
between the young people and older residents. I wasn’t there long enough to see if anything
worked, as I was transferred to Surrey Detachment in March of 1979 (thanks to a kind Staffing
Officer who was trying to get me back closer to home).
With a penchant for ‘forms design’, and a requirement for investigating and reporting to the
Coroner the intricacies of sudden deaths, I created a form that could be used by both police and
ambulance personnel. It was sent to the B.C. Coroner’s office where it was acknowledged with
thanks, but I wasn’t there long enough to see if it was adopted.
Drugs were a ‘big thing’, magic mushrooms, marijuana. Every young person detained or
arrested was searched for traces of drugs, and inevitably a ‘seed’ could be find in a trouser
pocket. That led to charges of possession, very serious criminal offences in those days that
could land a person with a criminal record for life and in jail for years.
I do remember falling asleep one midnight
shift, in the police car, in a mall parking lot,
right by a bus stop, where I was quite
obvious to the commuters. How
embarrassing. Tough time staying awake
on the drives home after midnight shifts.
With space in our little yellow house
becoming limited as the kids grew, we
moved into a newer house at 33156
Hawthorne Avenue, just across the
freeway from where we were. Had 2
baths and a finished 1-bedroom suite in
the basement.
Our well-maintained home
33561 Holland Ave
Back garden like a park
June 2017
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