The nation’s law enforcement and judicial officials now have a quick reference guide to some of the most common criminal offences.
The pointers are compiled in the booklet, “Points to Prove”, produced by the National Prosecution Service.
Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Colin Williams, officially handed over the booklet to Commissioner of Police, Michael Charles, last week.
Tammika Mc Kenzie, a Crown Counsel at the Office of the DPP, explained that during her stint at magistrate’s courts, a lot of charges were coming to the court “and all the legs of the offences were not properly established”.
Mc Kenzie said that at the same time, Dan Suter, criminal justice advisor to the Eastern Caribbean Project, funded by the US Embassy in Barbados, had similar observations and raised the idea of the booklet with the DPP.
“And, in essence, what is contained herein, are the elements of each of those offences. The idea is each police officer would have one of these as a reference point,” Mc Kenzie said.
She said that at law school most students are exposed to “nutshells”.
“So, this, in essence is intended to be a police version of the nutshells here for our Royal St. Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, …” she said.
Mc Kenzie added that the booklet also contains certain guides, including powers of arrest, the Judges’ Rules, and tips on what to look for and follow up on while questioning suspects.
Meanwhile, the DPP said that the booklet speaks to offences such as crime against property and the person, sexual offences, in addition to newer offences, such as money laundering and human trafficking.
Meanwhile, Commissioner of Police, Michael Charles, thanked the DPP and his team for producing the booklet.
“And this will definitely aid us to solve any kind of crime in St. Vincent and the Grenadines,” the police chief said.
Will the public be given access to this booklet via the Internet or purchase at every police station so as to apprised of their rights?
The lapdog which is the dpp is now telling the ground dog who is the commissioner to behave better. You mean to tell me their are police walking around SVG carrying guns and don’t even know the law they are suppose to uphold? So whose law have they been upholding? it can’t be ours because they need a cheat sheet to know what our law is.
And that’s why cops are beating 15 year olds, shooting people and stopping and searching everyone like Nazi Germany. Maybe you should give the commissioner the first copy, because he seems to be the king fool of all these foolish hired goons in SVG.
Forget the book, bring back PACE and make sure that every interview of suspects is recorded, it will stop torture and abuse by the police.
How about making a copy of these new laws and rules available at each library? So that citizens are aware of what to look for, if and when they are confronted by police. Right now the police feel they can arrest citizens on any and every thing that cross their minds. I am glad to know there are documented procedures, but the citizen must also be made aware of what’s in that book.
It’s also a sure way to know if it becomes part of police training. Right now there are some square pegs in round holes, including the new commissioner.
DAVID, Its got nothing to do with the rights of the detained, its how to get the right information written down to get a conviction.
That creates another problem in as much as our police have been know to attempt beat confessions from those being questioned, so getting confessions to the right questions are important if they also want a conviction from those extorted confessions. I suppose it saves them just making it up and writing it down, now there is a procedure.