A plan for ‘bad boys’
THE EDITOR: What a exactly is CoP Trevor Paul’s and the Police Service of TT strategy for combating the spiraling crime rate that have besieged TT in recent years? He admitted recently at a press conference that he was wrong when making his Oct 2004 prediction that crime in TT would be brought under control within one year. That would have been Oct 2005. His promise or "wish" was woefully doomed to failure without a plan to achieve it. As we all are painfully aware, the number of murders, kidnappings and other serious crimes has continued to skyrocket. After a record-setting number of murders for 2005, we have continued on our murderous path this year. The number of murders topping 35 as of Jan 28 (ie more than one murder a day, so far for the year) and with no let up in site. Where similar staggering numbers of crimes have occurred, the police hierarchy use statistical analysis of crimes to decide what must be done to mount attacks on them. As an example, the Police Chief of Houston, Texas, USA (a city of about six million people and 336 murders for 2005) announced recently that he and his department were developing new strategies to deal with the increase in murders, breaking and entering and gang-related crimes that have been on the upswing since Hurricane Katrina in September’05 and the influx of New Orleans evacuees who now call Houston home. Many of these crimes stem from drugs and old turf wars that plagued the New Orleans neighbourhoods and have now re-emerged in Houston. They have tracked that the murder rate for the month of January increased by 50 percent over last year’s number and they attribute much of that increase to the new citizens of the city. So initiatives are being put in place to go after these gangs and other misfits who are reaping havoc in parts of the city. He showed pictures and called names of the known "gang leaders" and asked for the public’s help in tracking down and getting these criminals off the streets. He has increased the patrolling of his officers in high crime "hot spot" areas, including apartment complexes and has held his division heads personally responsible for the results of this campaign. I believe something needs to be similarly done by the commissioner and his executive leadership body. That is to expose these "bad boys" names to the country and seek the public’s help in bringing them to justice. It is only with intelligence and even infiltration into some of these gangs can the police ever hope to get their hands around the crime wave presently gripping the country. KELVIN C JAMES SR USA
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"A plan for ‘bad boys’"