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PSOJ - when it reach dem door, dem jump
Drastic crime plan - PSOJ outlines tough measures to curb mayhem
published: Friday | July 4, 2008
Mark Beckford, Staff Reporter
Colonel Trevor MacMillan (left), minister of national security, and Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin, commissioner of police, have a discussion during a tour of the Police Staff College in Twickenham Park, St Catherine, yesterday. - Norman Grindley/Deputy Chief Photographer
Corporate Jamaica yesterday loudened its cry against crime and violence, calling for drastic measures in the wake of a recent upsurge in high-profile violent incidents.
The Jamaica Employers' Feder-ation (JEF) and the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) yesterday condemned crime and violence in the island, with the latter committing to the establishment of a fund of $20 million to bolster the Crime Stop reward programme.
The PSOJ, after an emergency meeting held on Tuesday, insisted the Jamaican Government implement urgent legislative changes to fight crime.
Mandatory imprisonment
The changes proposed include the mandatory imprisonment on conviction for any gun-related crime, with a minimum of 15 years. The PSOJ also called for a three-strikes law for all repeat dangerous offenders, with those convicted three times for serious crimes jailed for a minimum of 25 years.
In its release, the PSOJ said, "Jamaica is using normal legislation to deal with abnormal circumstances."
It continued: "Like other jurisdictions, we need to urgently amend our laws to deal with the special nuances of our current wave of criminal activity."
The statements from the PSOJ and JEF came on the day Shalman Scott, chairman of the Montego Bay Metro Service, was shot multiple times and almost a week after Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) Chairman Douglas Chambers was shot dead at the company's Spanish Town depot.
Crime in Jamaica has worsened in recent months, with the highest -ever number of murders in one month recorded in May when 199 persons were killed.
800 murdered
Since the start of the year, more than 800 persons have been murdered.
Yesterday, Minister of National Security, Colonel Trevor Mac-Millan, told The Gleaner he could not comment on the PSOJ's recommendations until he had seen them for himself.
Macmillan also said he did not believe the attack on Scott was an indication that there was, at the moment, a widespread attempt to victimise public figures.
"I don't particularly have any special feeling for the individual, except to say that it is a part of the problems we have here and it is a problem that we're going to have to deal with and it cannot happen overnight," Macmillan said during a tour of the Police Staff College in Twickenham Park, St Catherine. "It took 30 years to get here and it is going to take a little bit of time to correct."
The Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC) and Minister of Water and Housing Horace Chang, the member of parliament for North West St James, added their voices to the condemnation of Scott's shooting.
Most worrying
Chang, who wished Scott a speedy recovery on behalf of Prime Minister Bruce Golding, said the attack pointed to a "most worrying trend of cowardly assaults on productive, law-abiding citizens".
The JCC called on the police to make every effort to bring the perpetrators to justice, as a show of determination by the State to take back control.
Nancy Anderson of the Independent Jamaica Council for Human Rights welcomed some of the recommendations of the PSOJ, and pointed out that the Fingerprint Act already allowed the police to take the fingerprints of persons without the consent of the court.
She, however, said she believed the DNA and forensic capabilities of the police force needed to be upgraded to facilitate other aspects of the PSOJ's request.
But Anderson rejected the PSOJ's demand for minimum sentences for gun crimes and repeat offenders, saying the principle of minimum sentences goes against the leaving of sentencing to the discretion of the judiciary.
She also called for more research on a three-strikes law, which has been used to great effect in sections of the United States.
Meanwhile the JEF, in its statement, said it was concerned about the abduction of the son of Jacqueline Coke-Lloyd, its central executive officer, who was returned to his family on the weekend after he had been abducted last week.
The JEF also condemned threats to Coke Lloyd and the federation's president, Audrey Hinchcliffe.
The federation said it was alarmed by the growing trend in which "threats and violence are being used as a tool to address disputes, rather than the legitimate structures and avenues".
PSOJ recommendations
Mandatory imprisonment on conviction for any gun-related crime, including illegal possession of firearms for a minimum of 15 years. Persons so accused should be denied bail and their cases fast-tracked through the court system.
Three-strikes law for all repeat dangerous offenders. Anyone convicted three times of serious crimes - including robbery, wounding, rape or unlawful possession of firearms - should be jailed for a minimum of 25 years without the possibility of parole.
Implement video evidence to record witness testimonies and allow such to be used in evidence, supported by a video link for cross-examination purposes.
Amend the Fingerprint Act in order that fingerprints, photographs and DNA samples (mouth swabs) are taken from all persons arrested or charged with a criminal offence.
Formulate, share and achieve buy-in of a comprehensive and structured plan to fight crime, incorporating short-, medium- and long-term solutions. mark.beckford@gleanerjm.com
published: Friday | July 4, 2008
Mark Beckford, Staff Reporter
Colonel Trevor MacMillan (left), minister of national security, and Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin, commissioner of police, have a discussion during a tour of the Police Staff College in Twickenham Park, St Catherine, yesterday. - Norman Grindley/Deputy Chief Photographer
Corporate Jamaica yesterday loudened its cry against crime and violence, calling for drastic measures in the wake of a recent upsurge in high-profile violent incidents.
The Jamaica Employers' Feder-ation (JEF) and the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) yesterday condemned crime and violence in the island, with the latter committing to the establishment of a fund of $20 million to bolster the Crime Stop reward programme.
The PSOJ, after an emergency meeting held on Tuesday, insisted the Jamaican Government implement urgent legislative changes to fight crime.
Mandatory imprisonment
The changes proposed include the mandatory imprisonment on conviction for any gun-related crime, with a minimum of 15 years. The PSOJ also called for a three-strikes law for all repeat dangerous offenders, with those convicted three times for serious crimes jailed for a minimum of 25 years.
In its release, the PSOJ said, "Jamaica is using normal legislation to deal with abnormal circumstances."
It continued: "Like other jurisdictions, we need to urgently amend our laws to deal with the special nuances of our current wave of criminal activity."
The statements from the PSOJ and JEF came on the day Shalman Scott, chairman of the Montego Bay Metro Service, was shot multiple times and almost a week after Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) Chairman Douglas Chambers was shot dead at the company's Spanish Town depot.
Crime in Jamaica has worsened in recent months, with the highest -ever number of murders in one month recorded in May when 199 persons were killed.
800 murdered
Since the start of the year, more than 800 persons have been murdered.
Yesterday, Minister of National Security, Colonel Trevor Mac-Millan, told The Gleaner he could not comment on the PSOJ's recommendations until he had seen them for himself.
Macmillan also said he did not believe the attack on Scott was an indication that there was, at the moment, a widespread attempt to victimise public figures.
"I don't particularly have any special feeling for the individual, except to say that it is a part of the problems we have here and it is a problem that we're going to have to deal with and it cannot happen overnight," Macmillan said during a tour of the Police Staff College in Twickenham Park, St Catherine. "It took 30 years to get here and it is going to take a little bit of time to correct."
The Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC) and Minister of Water and Housing Horace Chang, the member of parliament for North West St James, added their voices to the condemnation of Scott's shooting.
Most worrying
Chang, who wished Scott a speedy recovery on behalf of Prime Minister Bruce Golding, said the attack pointed to a "most worrying trend of cowardly assaults on productive, law-abiding citizens".
The JCC called on the police to make every effort to bring the perpetrators to justice, as a show of determination by the State to take back control.
Nancy Anderson of the Independent Jamaica Council for Human Rights welcomed some of the recommendations of the PSOJ, and pointed out that the Fingerprint Act already allowed the police to take the fingerprints of persons without the consent of the court.
She, however, said she believed the DNA and forensic capabilities of the police force needed to be upgraded to facilitate other aspects of the PSOJ's request.
But Anderson rejected the PSOJ's demand for minimum sentences for gun crimes and repeat offenders, saying the principle of minimum sentences goes against the leaving of sentencing to the discretion of the judiciary.
She also called for more research on a three-strikes law, which has been used to great effect in sections of the United States.
Meanwhile the JEF, in its statement, said it was concerned about the abduction of the son of Jacqueline Coke-Lloyd, its central executive officer, who was returned to his family on the weekend after he had been abducted last week.
The JEF also condemned threats to Coke Lloyd and the federation's president, Audrey Hinchcliffe.
The federation said it was alarmed by the growing trend in which "threats and violence are being used as a tool to address disputes, rather than the legitimate structures and avenues".
PSOJ recommendations
Mandatory imprisonment on conviction for any gun-related crime, including illegal possession of firearms for a minimum of 15 years. Persons so accused should be denied bail and their cases fast-tracked through the court system.
Three-strikes law for all repeat dangerous offenders. Anyone convicted three times of serious crimes - including robbery, wounding, rape or unlawful possession of firearms - should be jailed for a minimum of 25 years without the possibility of parole.
Implement video evidence to record witness testimonies and allow such to be used in evidence, supported by a video link for cross-examination purposes.
Amend the Fingerprint Act in order that fingerprints, photographs and DNA samples (mouth swabs) are taken from all persons arrested or charged with a criminal offence.
Formulate, share and achieve buy-in of a comprehensive and structured plan to fight crime, incorporating short-, medium- and long-term solutions. mark.beckford@gleanerjm.com
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