Former RCMP Sergeant and author of Policing the Fringe: The Curious Life of a Small-Town Mountie, Charles Scheideman, is back with more hilarious, tragic and outrageous stories from his twenty-seven years of patrolling the small communities of the Interior of British Columbia, including the area around Castlegar.
Charles will give a talk and book signing for his new collection of police stories, Tragedy on Jackass Mountain: More Stories from a Small-Town Mountie, at the Castlegar and District Public Library (located at 1005 3rd Street) on Tuesday, June 21 starting at 7 p.m.
This new book is full of characters such as the Freedomites who attacked the power poles and railway tracks between Castlegar, Nelson and Slocan City with dynamite to “separate themselves from all worldly things.” Or the lone officer who took on three legendary hard-fighting drunks, earning him the respect of the citizens of Prince George, including the louts he single-handedly flattened.
Here too are stories conveying the sad truth and tragic consequences of all-too-common alcohol abuse, such as when an innocent man survived an alcohol-induced multi-vehicle accident on Jackass Mountain — twice — only to be taken by a determined Grim Reaper as he aided another motorist. Scheideman illustrates that “fate looks after some of us” in another story where the extremely drunk driver and passengers of a violent single car accident miraculously survive.
This book bristles with unforgettable stories about the author’s twenty-seven years working on the RCMP’s front lines and leaves the reader with renewed admiration and wonder for the men and women who uphold the law in some of BC’s more lawless regions.
Charles Scheideman grew up on a farm near Stony Plain, Alta., and joined the RCMP when he was 21, serving in seven different communities in rural British Columbia. After leaving the force in 1989, he worked for the British Columbia government in Victoria, where he still lives with his wife, Patricia.
This free event was made possible with help from the Canada Council for the Arts. For more information on Charles Scheideman’s presentation, please contact the Castlegar and District Public Library at 250-365-6611.
/Submitted by Harbour Publishing