If We Do Not, Who Will? - DS

It is CRITICAL to ensure that the Jamaica Constabulary force (JCF) brand is on par with the police force in first world countries and not ranked among those in the banana republic.

Therefore, we must think ‘outside the box’ to ensure:

1. There is a system of checks and balances and accountability within the JCF
2. The police force attracts persons that are balanced and of good character and judgment.
3. The periodic and systematic removal of criminals from the police force.
4. Strip the police of all duties that are not related to policing such as laboratory work at the forensic laboratory and the STORAGE and  SAFEKEEPING of DNA samples.  The duty of the police force is to police.

There has to be a paradigm shift in the operations relating to National Security to create hope in the future. We cannot continue to make policies which reflect the joy we have knowing that our daughters, sons, nieces and nephews have ten year visas, green cards and citizenship in another country. We must make policies that reflect our desire to have them live, work, raise their families and do business right here in Jamaica.

The members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force must appreciate that the Minister of National Security, The Honourable Robert Montaque,and not the Chairman of the Police Federation, Sergeant Raymond Wilson, is responsible for the drafting of POLICIES on National Security to which the members of the JCF are obliged to implement.

Therefore, I have recommended the following actions:

1. Strengthen the office of the Independent Commission of Investigations   (INDECOM)
2. Every employee of INDECOM member must undergo a lie detector test to ensure that the   integrity of INDECOM is maintained. 
3. Every employee of INDECOM must disclose the names of their relatives and close friends who are police officers to the INDECOM Commissioner
4. The INDECOM investigators must not be trained with police officers at the same institution. They must receive special training elsewhere.
5. Review the Jamaica Constabulary Force Act to ensure the laws are modern and compares favourably to those in First World Countries and do not promote the ‘legobeast’ actions among police officers.
6. INDECOM has too many numbers. Assign one number to INDECOM to cover the entire country that is advertised and easily remembered
7. Place the JCF call centre under the mantle of INDECOM or a private firm like that in the United States so as to monitor how many of these calls to 119 and 911 the police actually respond to. Special numbers such as those of Crime Stop can remain the responsibility of the police
8. The Jamaica Constabulary Force ambulance service must be placed under the authority of INDECOM or a private firm like the Para Medics ambulance service in the United States. to ensure that the bodies of persons who have been killed or injured by the police are not touched or removed from the scene by the police
9. Place the forensic laboratory service under the authority of INDECOM. At no time should there be any interaction between the INDECOM officers and the police
10. The DNA of convicted criminals must be placed under the mantle of INDECOM.
11. Put to an end the wearing of masK by the Police officers to conceal their identity. Even in Afghanistan and Iraq this is left to the Taliban. In the Gaza region, this is left to Hamas. I cannot imagine this happening in other Caribbean countries, probably in Haiti neither can I imagine this happening in Jamaica under British rule and it still does not happen in the British territories In cases of special operation, police officers that are not known by the community can be drawn from other areas but they must be properly identified by the visibility of their faces and their badge numbers.
12. The use of excessive force by the police must be adequately and satisfactorily explained. If this is not done then the police officer must be removed from the JCF.  I cannot grasp the reason for the use of excessive force in a tiny room to restrain someone.  Such unwarranted and unnecessary use of force should breach Force orders.
13. Police officers must appreciate that the JCF is under no obligation to keep them employed until they retire or choose to leave the organization but must systematically remove corrupt cops for the development of the country as a place to live, work, raise families and do business.
14. Police officers who disobey the force orders and wear wind breakers and other overcoats to conceal their badge numbers  must be removed from the force
15. Since the passing into law of the Suppressions of Crime Act (1974), the JCF has been kicking off the doors of Jamaican citizens which were not permissible under British rule. This, however, has not reduced crime as crime has increased by leaps and bounds over the years.

We must strategically apprehend suspects that are located within dwellings. I recommend the following:

1. Strategically position police officers around the occupied building
2. Communicate to the suspect via loud speakers to leave the building with their hands over their heads similarly to First World countries that value life.
3. Have the exit of the suspect recorded on the CCTV surveillance cameras of the police officers which are placed on the roof of their vehicles, similarly to those in First World countries
4. If the suspect refuses to exit the building ,then, place 'tear gas' canisters in the building to force his exit from the building
5. The picking up of suspects at all hours of the night cannot continue if we are serious about the integrity and the brand of the JCF when it is quite clear that the reputation of the JCF brand can affect the chance of a police officer being deployed to other Caribbean countries without the need for retraining and re-socialization.

Over the years, there have been cosmetic changes to the Suppressions of Crimes Act since 1974 but this did not stop the police from kicking off the doors of Keith Clarke in Kirkland Heights or the dirty tear up trousers barefoot man in Trench Town and neither do these changes guarantee that the door of Digicel’s, CEO Barry O’Brien, Sandals’, CEO Gordon “Butch” Stewart or the current National Security Minister, the Hon. Robert Montaque will not be kicked off when he retires from political representation or they may be beaten by the police like former PNP representative Mr. Jeffrey V Ford.

We must return to the time when one’s home was a sacred place. Currently, this is the thinking in First World countries and those countries that are still under British rule.  Rogue cops with an insatiable appetite for blood will always create a mountain from a mole hill to prevent changes that reflect respect for human life

Yours truly