JFJ renews body camera demand after fatal police shooting in St James

Jamaicans for Justice is pressing again for police body-worn cameras to be made compulsory after 45-year-old Latoya Bulgin was shot dead by a policeman during a protest in Granville, St. James, on Sunday. The human rights organisation says the killing points to deep weaknesses in how police actions are monitored and reviewed.

Taxi operators serving the Kingston metropolitan transport region are to be told by June 1 what will happen with the long-pending 16 per cent fare increase. The update came after discussions on Monday involving Finance Minister Fayval Williams and Transport Minister Daryl Vaz. Vaz said the delay was linked to higher oil prices internationally and the administration’s push to keep inflation under control.

Gordon House has also said there is no statutory timetable requiring Integrity Commission reports to be placed before Parliament by a specific date. The clarification comes amid growing pressure for the release of a report dealing with alleged corruption and irregularities at the Firearm Licensing Authority. Opposition Leader Mark Golding has called for the document to be tabled immediately, noting that it was submitted seven weeks ago.

In the alleged Clifton land fraud matter, school principal Sue-Lin Ward Brown is now set to go on trial on June 4. The St. Catherine Parish Court fixed the date after finding that there was enough material for a fraudulent conversion case to proceed.

In sport, Racing United head coach Anthony Patrick says his position with the club is uncertain after the team’s Jamaica Premier League quarter-final elimination. His one-year contract expires next month. Patrick previously led Racing United from Division Two into the Premier League.

At midday, the Jamaican dollar was trading at $158.77 to US$1, $215.75 to £1, and $116.36 to CAN$1. The forecast for Wednesday calls for a mostly sunny morning, followed by widely scattered showers and isolated showers across western parishes in the afternoon.