TOO MANY incidents involving the police smack of carelessness and lack of training as, for example, the case of a policeman who accidentally shot dead a 10-year-old girl while chasing a man he was trying to arrest for smoking a spliff.
Even the recent shoot-out with alleged drug traffickers at the Tinson Pen Aerodrome in Kingston, leaves several questions unanswered. For example, how was the pilot of the plane involved able, not only to take off, but to return some time later, park the aircraft and head to his hotel? Why wasn't the crime scene properly secured and a police presence maintained for an appropriate length of time? There may be good reasons for what occurred but, as reported by the police themselves, the episode shows them up as being out-smarted and sloppy.
Against this background, we are pleased to congratulate the members of the security forces and the Betting, Gaming and Lotteries Commission who organised and took part in the successful raid on an illegal gambling operation in the Corporate Area. This appears to have been a shining example of professional law enforcement in contrast to so many botched attempts in which the criminals escaped or, if caught, were released by the courts for lack of properly collected evidence.
In this case, all the elements of good police work seem to have been in place. There was good intelligence, the location was kept under surveillance for several weeks, the timing of the raid (7 o'clock at night when most of those involved were on site), was accurate and precise and the raiding team itself was in sufficient numbers to prevent escape.
In our view, what the police force needs to make such professionalism the rule rather than the exception, is to raise the entry level requirements for recruits and the provision of longer and more intense training courses similar to the military which can provide the leadership necessary to deal with the complexities of modern crime- fighting. Opportunities for promotion from the ranks would continue to be provided to those candidates who have upgraded their education and skills and are prepared to take the necessary advancement examinations.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
