Decoding RCMP talk of a targeted home invasion in North Vancouver

Language often tells a story—and perhaps no more so than in the world of police media relations.

Words like home invasion, targeted, and person of interest are laden with meaning.

If it's a targeted attack, it's a way of reassuring the public that they don't have to fear that this will happen to them.

A person of interest may not always be a suspect, but it's a nifty way for police to highlight someone who's wanted without facing the wrath of their lawyer afterward.

The term home invasion conveys something far more gruesome and violent than a standard break-and-enter, though the words "home invasion" do not appear in the Criminal Code of Canada.

Thus when you see an RCMP news release—like one issued today—saying police are investigating a targeted home invasion in North Vancouver, you can draw the following inferences:

• It was quite possibly a gangsters-on-gangsters confrontation.

• Someone busted into someone else's home, possibly with weapons, intending on inflicting violence.

• There are no suspects yet because the Mounties have not identified any "persons of interest".

The RCMP say that the incident occurred in the 5000 block of Molina Crescent, and two victims suffered minor injuries. Later, the Mounties seized money and drugs from the house.