52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2022: Week 47 (WRONG SIDE OF THE LAW)
I moved around a lot while growing up. I was in 5 schools in 3 provinces for grade 3, and 3 schools in 2 provinces for grade 4. Twice I was in one school for 2 grades, but every other year I was lucky if I completed a full year in a school.
All the moving made figuring out my hometown a bit challenging.
By the time I graduated high school I had lived in: Bagotville (La Baie) [now known as Saguenay] Quebec, Edmonton Alberta, St Albert Alberta, Bayfield Ontario, Dashwood Ontario, Grand Bend Ontario, Kingston Ontario, and Nelson British Columbia.
My school attendance:
Kindergarten: Edmonton, Alberta [1 school)]
Grade 1 & 2: St. Albert, Alberta [1 school]
Grade 3: St. Albert, Alberta & Nelson, British Columbia {2 schools} & Dashwood, Ontario & Brucefield, Ontario [5 schools, 3 provinces]
Grade 5 & 6: Nelson British Columbia [1 school]
Grade 7: Nelson British Columbia [1 school]
Grade 8: Grand Bend, Ontario & Nelson, British Columbia (last 8 days & final exams) [2 schools]
Grade 9: Nelson, British Columbia & St. Albert, Alberta [2 schools]
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Grade 10: Nelson, British Columbia [1 school]
Grade 11: Kingston, Ontario [1 school]
Grade 12: Nelson, British Columbia [1 school]
By the time I graduated high school I had been in 15 different schools, 22 different classrooms & 18 different homes.
I chose Nelson as my hometown because I lived there the most of any of the other places I lived even if it was spread over many years.
Starting in Grade 5 I began using my stepfather's last name. It wasn't done legally. I had an affidavit drafted by a local lawyer that said I was using my stepfather's last name as an 'assumed name for non-criminal purposes'.
Over my teen years I moved back and forth between my parents. When I lived with my dad I used my birth name. When I lived with my mom I used my stepdad's last name.
Each move resulted in a shift in how I was known in my community, and in many ways how I viewed myself.
When I was 21 I moved to Vancouver to work in the field of Social Services in preparation for entry to that program in the fall. I obtained employment working in a group home with adults with developmental differences. Prior to beginning work I needed a criminal record check.
In those days we had no internet. I called the Vancouver transit number to ask for the best route to get to the RCMP station at Main & Hastings from where I was living.
Several bus changes later I arrived in the Downtown East Side of Vancouver. At the time it didn't look quite like it does now, but it certainly was eye opening to this small town 21 year old.
I navigated around folks that scared me, entered the police station clutching my already completed paperwork, and nervously approached the desk while wide eyed watching criminals being moved around in handcuffs.
The officer at the desk took my paperwork, entered some stuff in his computer, and asked me to follow him. I was taken into a small room with no windows, and asked to take a seat. About 10 minutes later another officer came in, fingerprinted me, and left. About 20 minutes later I really needed to pee, and discovered the door was locked.
I realized I was not free to go.
I then pondered 'did I only think I got away with the mostly almost harmless shenanigans while growing up?'. Was there a record of it somewhere?
After I had been in that locked room for about an hour an officer came in and said 'you are free to go'. I asked him if I had passed the criminal record check. He replied 'the completed form will be sent to your perspective employer'. He said nothing else as he escorted me out of the building.
I spent the next week wondering if I really had a new job, and was delighted when they called with my start date.
About 6 months later I needed another criminal record check before the start of the Social Service Worker program.
Off to the Nelson City Police station I go with my completed form. The officer enters some stuff into the computer, and says 'thank you'. I say 'that's it?'. He says 'yes' looking a bit confused at how confused I looked.
I told him what happened in Vancouver. He starts to laugh, and tells me 'they thought they had this person' while he held up about 10 pages of computer paper held together by the feed tabs spread across the floor.
Turns out I share a birth name with a hardcore criminal who already had a long violent history. She was born exactly 1 year after I was in the neighbouring province. The Nelson officer told me this is the usual alias details criminals will change when trying to hide. He also shared the only reason he didn't finger print me is that Nelson is a small town, and he knew my family. He knew I was not that criminal, but in Vancouver they needed the fingerprints to confirm.
I wonder if it is because of our shared name and similar details that I am frequently selected for extra security screening on international flights. The whole thing may also be confounded by my using 2 last names interchangeably while growing up.
The day I found myself on the WRONG SIDE OF THE LAW through no fault of my own!!!
This is why I search -
Cause ...
You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!
***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***
Links:
Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/52-ancestors-in-52-weeks/
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