Last week, more than 600 residents gathered in the Lou Soppit Community Centre in Rocky Mountain House to share their concerns with the AB Government regarding issues of rural crime. 

Residents brought up issues like struggling with mental health, not feeling safe in their own homes and not feeling heard by the government. 

MLA for Rimbey-Rocky-Sundre Jason Nixon said he was glad to have been joined by Minister of Justice and Solicitor General Doug Schweitzer because he wants his constituents' voices heard and changes to be made.

"I think the biggest thing that stands out to me, every time we have one of these halls, is just how scared everybody is. I hear how scared my neighbours and friends are, and the people I represent. It’s a real fear. It’s completely unacceptable that anyone in Alberta would be that scared to be inside their own homes," Nixon said.

"And that’s how a lot of people in rural communities are feeling right now, and we’re trying to get that up here in Edmonton and get our fellow politicians to understand."

Nixon said that he wants Albertans to know they aren't giving up in their efforts to address rural crime issues and that this round of town halls across the province was a clear first step in creating real solutions. 

Earlier this month the Government of Alberta released several steps they are taking to help make rural residents feel safer. One of those measures was the creation of the 'RAPID Force' - the Rural Alberta Provincial Integrated Defence Force. This expanded the roles and authorities of 400 peace officers in the Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Branch, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Branch and the traffic arm of the Alberta Sheriffs. 

Another step announced that Nixon said he was particularly proud of was a movement to strengthen property rights for residents. 

"I think we were all offended to see what happened with the Maurice family down in Okotoks where they were violated in their home, were put in a situation where they had to defend their family and ultimately a criminal came back and sued them. We’re taking steps to make sure criminals can’t re-victimize their victims after robbing them," Nixon said. 

He added that it's also been a strong focus to increase victim impact statements, in hopes that it will help drive home the true extent of what happens after a person has been victimized. 

"We are dealing with constituents who are being robbed upwards of sometimes four times a week and aren’t even getting access to law enforcement help because it happens so much that officers can’t keep up and keep going out," he said. 

"The other thing I think is really, really shocking is the amount of crime we hear about that people aren’t even reporting. Now, we’re in a situation where people have gotten so frustrated that they aren’t even reporting anymore, so we don’t have the full statistics of what’s taking place in our communities."

He said that by helping get the victims' stories to judges, it will help to strengthen their trust in the system and in the ability of a judge to pass down an appropriate sentence. 

Nixon said the province will continue to work on crime reduction strategies.