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Michael Paille has been running a one-man crime and open drug use patrol for the past seven weeks. He says he’s not out on the streets every day to enforce the law, or judge anyone, but to help those that need to be helped. (Prabhjot Lotey/CBC)
For seven weeks now, a Sargent Avenue business owner has been taking matters into his own hands, patrolling his neighbourhood administering naloxone and helping prevent crime.
“I saw that something needed to be done and I picked it up and said what I was always taught: ‘If you’re not willing to do it yourself, then don’t ask others,’” said Michael Paille, co-owner of Cobra Collectibles, a retail store that sells toys, comics, and games.
“I’m not out here to enforce the law, I’m not out here to judge anyone — I’m out here to help the people that need to be helped,” said Paille, who has also organized crime prevention conferences for local retailers.
He patrols the area near his store daily, from morning until evening.
As he walks, he checks in on people he passes by on sidewalks, down alleyways, and behind buildings — all while wearing a vest carrying medical supplies, a camera, and little information forms advising people where to go to find housing, food, and encampments,
The “Sargent Street Watch” as he calls it, is not immune to danger.
“I was assaulted about 2½ weeks ago, and then I was just assaulted last week,” said Paille.
Over the past two months he says he has picked up approximately 400 needles, and about 50 broken “bubblers,” a type of pipe used to consume drugs.
He says that’s in addition to having administered naloxone — a medication used to reverse the effects of opiod overdoses — to 40 people. The medication is also known by the brand name Narcan.
At first he wasn’t doing this alone, but that changed after the first week.
“The first week, the other two couldn’t deal with it,” said Paille.
“There’s things you have to do like administering Narcan to a 12-year-old – it really shocked them, some of the stuff they saw.”
He’s hoping others will join him on his patrols, to help alleviate some of the pressure on first responders.
Tamerat Sisay, who owns T.S. Auto Service says he’d be willing to step up.
“If they need me and they tell me to do it, yeah I would help out too,” said Sisay.
Tamerat Sisay, owner of T.S. Auto Service, says he’d be willing to join the Sargent Street Watch, as he’s had people breaking into his customers’ cars on his company’s lot. (Pranhjot Lotey/CBC)
He says what Paille is doing for the community is very good, as he’s had to deal with people breaking into cars on his company’s lot, even sleeping and sometimes leaving used needles in customers’ cars.
“Then the customer is blaming you, and then I’m going through insurance, right, it’s really hard.”
Paille says he has had to put in about $1,000 of his own money into this initiative, mostly to pay for medical supplies, as funding for this sort of work is limited.
It’s something he’s hoping the city of Winnipeg will look at.
“I think the city should be getting people to do what I do, you know, you don’t need police to do it,” said Paille.
“If one person can make a difference, a group of people can make a bigger difference.”