There's a lot going on this week so I'm going to deal with four things: deterrent punishment, jails in Shediac, the great unknown near Shediac's Chapman's Corner development and an overpass for the airport.

There was a disturbing event in our courts this week. A woman was sentenced to four years in prison for failing to take care of her elder mother. Apparently the mother was left in a chair for months and died shortly after being taken to hospital. The daughter was charged with failing "without lawful excuse to provide the necessities of life to her mother while her mother was under her charge and unable, by reason of illness, to care for herself".

What's disturbing about this, aside from the treatment of her mother is that apparently the daughter had been known to social workers. She had her three children taken away from her because she was unable to care for them. Apparently, she "has only a Grade 6 education and is of low intellect". If this woman (the convicted daughter) was in sight of social worker community, it seems to me that the system has some culpability here. Surely there would be periodic visits to the home where the mother could be observed in distress.

As to the daughter's grade six education, that could be attributed to mental capacity, poverty, lack of a learning environment, illness or any number of things beyond her personal control. I don't think we know the answer to that one.

As to "deterrent" sentencing, the woman pleaded guilty so either she had the mental capacity to know that she did something wrong and therefore deterrent might be appropriate or she does not have the capacity to distinguish right from wrong. If she does not have the mental capacity to be responsible for her behaviour and if she was encouraged by a lawyer or social workers to plead guilty, convicting her of willful abuse is wrong, jailing her is wrong and using her sentence to deter others is doubly wrong.

What happened in this situation is not normal. Passive abuse is not a normal behaviour.

There seems to be some question about this woman's competence. If she is not capable of behaving like a normal human being, she should not be going to prison. She should be going for treatment. Unless we know the answer to these questions, we cannot know whether the judge over-reacted or whether the judge is making good public policy. At the very least, the woman should have had a psychiatric assessment before being sentenced.

While on the subject of legal matters, I see that Shediac will soon be host to Moncton's new jail house. The jail will hold up to ninety inmates, people waiting for trial on charges of murder, rape, arson, theft, drug-dealing, drunk-driving, vagrancy and more. A new courthouse is being built in Moncton. That is where this hostel should be located. People in Shediac are concerned. They're concerned that a jail-break could unleash dangerous people in the community. They are concerned that vagrants could be released in the community. They suspect that prison communities attract more drug dealers than tourists. Their concerns may be unfounded but they beg the question - how does such a decision get made without public consultation?

While we're in Shediac, let's consider another happening. For weeks now, construction workers have been tearing down houses and clearing land on Main Street near Chapman's Corner. Word is that a mall is being built to house a new Sobeys or Superstore, a Canadian Tire and a liquor store. The developers, Montreal's Plazacorp Retail Properties won't say who the tenants will be. A development of this size will attract a lot of traffic. How will that traffic be managed? Will there be new on/off ramps from and to Highway 11 north and south? If not, we're going to be facing some awful big traffic jams. Think of Trinity Drive or Main Street Shediac in July. I ask the question again, how does such a decision (to build the mall) get made without public consultation?

My final comment deals with a proposed off-ramp for travelers on the westbound lane of Highway 15 (the four lane highway from Shediac to Moncton) direct to the airport. In my view, this is an absolute necessity for the airport to grow, for the convenience of passengers and shippers and for the pride of Greater Moncton. What's there now is 'Mickey Mouse', is confusing for strangers and creates a poor first impression of the City. It may also cost the airport money. Surely there are dollars in the federal government's stimulus budget to help fund construction of the overpass and ramps needed to make this a real international airport.

W.E. (Bill) Belliveau is a Shediac resident and Moncton business consultant. He can be contacted at bill.bellstrategic@nb.aibn.com