Holness calls for JCF review of crime-scene care for injured and dead

Prime Minister Andrew Holness has instructed the Jamaica Constabulary Force to reassess the way police help injured people and handle the removal of bodies at crime scenes, noting that the matter is to go before the National Security Council.

Holness said the State has a duty to make sure victims and relatives are met with greater professionalism, empathy and responsibility. “If necessary, protocols have to be established about how you remove the deceased from crime scenes or assist injured persons. These are matters that have to be looked into,” the Prime Minister said.

“We’re trying to build an economy; we are trying to build a society, but more importantly, we are building a civilisation. How we treat our injured, our most vulnerable, weakest amongst us, how we treat the remains of the deceased tells us a lot about the kind of civilisation we have,” he added.

The Prime Minister was speaking on May 22 at the National Police College of Jamaica in Twickenham Park, St. Catherine, where he delivered the main address for the 91st Cohort graduation ceremony of the JCF Staff and Junior Command Course.

He praised the officers who completed the programme and urged them to keep serving Jamaicans with discipline, endurance and professionalism.

Holness also acknowledged the JCF’s progress in reducing murders and other violent offences, while reminding members of the force that saving and protecting lives remains their central mission.

He pointed as well to the wider Caribbean work being done by Jamaican law-enforcement personnel, saying their support is becoming more significant as neighbouring territories confront transnational organised crime.

Holness referred to a recent trip to the Turks and Caicos Islands, where, he said, Jamaican officers received commendation for their contribution to better security and stronger confidence among investors.

The Prime Minister said Jamaica has built anti-crime approaches and systems that can be offered to other countries dealing with similar security pressures. He added that spending on national security remains tied to economic progress, because safer communities help businesses grow, support employment and improve quality of life.