The Chronicle is as flabbergasted and shocked as everyone else to learn that career offender Ronald Teneycke was able to write a letter to one of his victims while he was in custody last summer.
Teneycke robbed Eastside Grocery at gunpoint before being apprehended in a police manhunt. The robbery wasn’t violent, but needless to say it was very unsettling for one of the co-owners who served Teneycke.
The Chronicle was later informed that he mailed a long letter to the owners, referring to the robbery and how it was reported that the clerk (co-owner) did not feel overly threatened by him, which Teneycke was pleased to hear.
The big question is, how was this dangerous person (a convicted sex offender) allowed to write this letter and re-victimize these women?
One would think that BC Corrections staff would have been more diligent in monitoring his outgoing mail to ensure he wasn’t re-victimizing people or setting up another criminal scheme.
This was a real travesty of justice that should never have happened. That letter should have been confiscated, and if anyone argues about invasion of privacy, they should work with victims of crime for six months.
The Town of Oliver is in the midst of writing an impact statement that will hopefully have some influence on the sentencing of Teneycke, who recently pleaded guilty to his crimes.
There is no doubt that he deserves dangerous offender status and an indefinite jail term. Like shooting victim Wayne Belleville said, Teneycke has terrorized the South Okanagan for far too long.
School closure
The school closure saga isn’t over yet despite the board’s adoption of the bylaw.
The Town of Osoyoos is adamant in taking legal action against the school board in the form of an injunction. But the question is: does the municipality have a leg to stand on?
The town offered the board $1 million to keep operating the school, but there was no official consent from the public to permit council to use taxpayers’ money for this purpose.
We applaud the town for persevering and doing whatever it can to keep their school open, but using threats of legal action didn’t help the cause. In fact, it may have hindered it. To threaten a school board with legal action prior to the final adoption of the bylaw was arguably not a wise move. It may have caused more ill feelings and contempt.
The rude outbursts at last week’s board meeting were understandable but mean-spirited. We hope readers don’t paint all Osoyoos residents with the same brush.
Trustee Rachel Allenbrand made a profound statement that is very true: the board’s mandate is not to ensure the economic well-being of a community (because that’s the town’s job). Its mandate is to educate students.
Lyonel Doherty, editor
