10/5/2007 11:20:00 AM Public has little faith in police Sun survey underscores widespread fear that gang/drug culture is spiralling out of control; cops say they’ve made hundreds of arrests
There are fresh concerns today about the effectiveness of the police service after a new survey showed most residents have little confidence in its ability to solve drug and gang-related violent crime.
The survey was conducted last month, four weeks after footballer Shaki Crockwell was shot dead. His killer is still on the loose.
Mr. Crockwell's death was the latest in a growing list of killings that haven't been solved. Others include Marcus Gibbings who was found dead in his apartment a year ago; Jason Lightbourne who was shot dead in a car last summer; and Shaundae Jones who was shot in Dockyard four years ago.
The survey shows nearly 70 per cent of residents are "not very" or "not at all" confident in the police's ability to bring certain criminals to court and that a massive 89 per cent of people think shootings and gang culture are getting out of control.
Police yesterday issued a statement reiterating their call for community cooperation.
They said: "Police are fully aware of the importance of tackling crime and the public's fear of rising crime. Unfortunately a number of recent violent crimes have served to heighten this belief.
"The vast majority of violent incidents involve people known to one another. As we have previously stated, the reluctance of people to assist the police only serves to compound the problem.
"The police are not complacent and are actively pursuing crime and criminals across the island. Over 4,000 people were arrested in the last year; 500 of them were arrested for drug related offences and a large quantity of drugs were seized. This should reassure the public of the police's efforts and the successes that are occurring. Despite the public concern, it is important to remember that Bermuda still remains one of the safest countries in the world."
The survey was commissioned by the Bermuda Sun and was part of the Bermuda Omnibus Survey conducted by the research arm of Total Marketing and Communications Limited.
According to the poll, 20 per cent of residents believe crime is the single most important issue, up from nine per cent earlier in the year. Police statistics show there were six firearm offences and 305 violent crimes last year.
Yesterday, Shaundae Jones' mom Marsha said it's up to the police and the community to get it right. She's now planning an awareness march for November. She said: "There should be a marriage between the community and the police. I think there is some lack of experience in investigating certain types of crime. I've always said we should exchange one or two of our guys with experienced homicide police from the U.S. that are veterans in this field.
"I wouldn't necessarily say our police are hopeless, but if you are not sure what to do, what do you do?"
Shaundae was just 18 when he was shot. Mrs. Jones said all the other murders that have taken place since then have put a strain on resources. She said: "It would be nice if we could have a homicide division that's had some hands-on training."
She also supports the idea of a witness protection programme, which the Government is looking at. "Without it, people don't want to get involved so they don't speak up," she said.
As for finding her son's killer she said: "Right now it's just hanging in the air. I don't really feel that confident that I will have closure, but I hope that I do. Everything becomes so dragged out."
Mrs. Jones said she hopes to mobilize the community next month by getting more than 1,000 people to march through town, which will include family and friends of people suffered violent deaths. More details will be released nearer the time.
Reader Comments
Posted: Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Comment by:
Newyorker
Brian: Your comments are generally good, although pointed in a different direction from mine. There are a lot of police in Bermuda, but a great deal of them are working in specialized areas. They are somewhat under-strength, and whenever the police is under-strength, the one and only area that suffers is general patrol work. If more Bermudians would join the force, it would not only solve this problem, but would also go a long way to eliminating a lot of the historic dislike and mistrust of the police, which is still currently seen as foreign. As for re-shaping the hearts and minds of Bermuda's youth, that's a pipe dream. We are competing with a much stronger influence in the form of millionaire rappers, and the lure of the lifestyle of local drug dealers.
Posted: Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Comment by:
Brian
Do the police still "walk the beat"? Do they go out on patrol? The only time I see them is when they are directing traffic, set up a speed trap or are racing to the scene of a crime. I hardly ever see them just out and about. We all know where problem areas are but the police never seem to be in those areas. 20 years ago you would get pulled over or stopped if you looked the least bit suspicious, I hated that, but the other day I saw someone driving around with a scarf around the bottom part of his face. If you have to hide your face you must be up to no good. Not a police person was in site. Are the police that under manned? are they under funded? Can someone explain why this is happening?
A generation of kids have been left out of society and ignored so they form their own groups and find their identity within these groups. It stated with the mega schools and kids grouping together for their own safety.
Just my opinion. Solution? a better education with the SATs, GCSE and A levels, IB or Technical training taught in a number of smaller high schools around the island. Remember when a Bermudian education was one of the best in the world? Yes policing has something to do with it but it is not the whole picture. And while we are at it the kids that are sleeping 4, 5 or 6 in a bed room probably are not going to have a chance to do well in school. Parents working countless jobs to pay the rent ect. If we don't want our country to become a gang land we have to start solving these problems. Lets start by getting rid of unnecessary expenses like government TV stations, The countless trips around the world and $1000 dollar a night hotels. reclaim all the money lost from the housing scam (where ever it is) and start correcting the situation.
Posted: Monday, October 08, 2007
Comment by:
Newyorker
Bermuda does have it's own set of unique problems when it comes to law and order, and the public's faith in the police.
One must understand that the police can only be as good as the public that supports it. Unlike traffic offences, almost all crime takes place when the police are somewhere else. Unless we want to pay for enough police officers to be stationed on every single street corder, 24-hours a day, then this will not change. Even if we could do that, crimes often take place inside private places where police officers don't typically patrol. So, the police have to rely on something called witnesses in order to solve crimes and prosecute individuals who instinctively deny all accusations. It's not like TV shows, where criminals make admissions of guilt by the end of the show. Now on top of witnesses, you have to have juries that weigh up the evidence, and don't get swayed by personal prejudices.
To add to the above, you have to consider the following "Bermuda" hurdles:
1. A large portion of the public, even those that are law-abiding, who still view the police negatively. Much of this is based upon historic perceptions of the police as being racist, English, foreign, etc.
2. The tiny size of Bermuda, with it's close-knit society, makes acting as a witness ... even if you are the victim ... something that could be at best, anti-social, or at worst, life-threatening.
Posted: Sunday, October 07, 2007
Comment by:
Philip Swift
Street Gang recognition
In 2005 this site was contacted by a US Officer expressing his concern about the markings he had seen whilst holidaying in Bermuda; Gang 'graffiti'. The officer, who has d produced a substantial file on the gangs and their markings, took the time and trouble to forward the information (presentation) to us.
We have offered the file to the Island's Governor and the Bermuda police. To date, we have heard no further from them. Is it that Bermuda just does not care or would they rather brush such information under the carpet, ignore the problem in the hope it goes away by itself or for fear of harming their tourist trade?
In October 2006, Bermuda's press reported on an article in the New York Post:
THIS summer’s outbreak of shootings and gang violence has garnered further bad press for Bermuda – this time in the Travel pages of the tabloid New York Post. Referring to the July slaying of 18-year-old Jason Lightbourne and a series of earlier drive-by shootings, the US tabloid highlighted the growing crime problem on the island. In a page lead article headlined Straight outta Hamilton, the feature asked readers: “Visiting Bermuda any time soon? Be extra careful about the clothes you pack: Too much red might miff the Crips, too much blue and the Bloods will be out for yours. “Yep, the kind of Menace II High Society-like shenanigans you’d expect in less, shall we say, secure climes, has finally come to the mid-Atlantic haven for billionaires.”
“Earlier gang-related nonsense includes a bar shoot ‘em up and a shocking drive-by – an expensive ordeal considering Bermudans [sic] pay over $6/gallon for gas,” the commentator quipped.
“Meanwhile, graffiti and tattoos affiliated with the Bloods and the Crips are popping up all over the British island,” the article continued.
“What’s going on? Police blame drugs. Bermuda’s narcotics sales total $200 million a year – not a bad haul when only 65,000 potential users live there.
“The tourism industry, of course, is less than pleased, telling New York Post Travel that the Government would definitely be taking measures to make sure this craziness stops.”
The gunning down of Mr. Lightbourne made international headlines earlier in the year, with many news agencies and national newspapers giving over coverage to the rise in violence.
Tourism Minister Ewart Brown was later quoted as saying that such headlines did not promote the sort of image that Bermuda was trying to sell.
