Major Reduction in Police Killings in Jamaica for 2014
Many persons are not very trusting of police officers in Jamaica.
This is in large part due to the high number of Jamaican citizens killed at the hands of the police on an annual basis.
With a major reduction in police killings so far this year, members of the island’s Constabulary Force may be viewed with less suspicion by more Jamaicans.
According to a report by Yahoo News, Jamaica is on track to have the fewest number of persons killed at the hands of law enforcement in years.
Human rights groups have also noticed the reduction in police killings.
“The total figure is still far too high, although the current trend may result in one of the lowest annual numbers of police killings in Jamaica in decades,” said Jamaicans for Justice, the island’s most prominent rights group.
The number of citizens killed by police is expected to reach just over 100 this year, far fewer than the 258 killed last year by security forces. The annual total of police killings hasn’t dipped below 200 since 2004.
“Police always used to come with guns cocked, but more of them are calmer now and have a better attitude,” said Susan Ramsay, a mother of three in the rough east Kingston neighborhood of Rockfort. “It’s gotten to the point where I prefer seeing the police around here than not seeing them.”
Jamaica still has a very long way to go in terms of reducing police killings but this is a positive trend.
For a quick comparison, Chicago which is considered to be one of the most dangerous cities in the United States had 13 people being fatally shot by police last year, and the U.S. city has roughly the same population as our island – 2.7 million.
Source: Yahoo News