- Introduction and background
- Part 1: Legal frameworks
- Part 2: Policies and procedures
- Part 3: Comparative indicators
- Summary and recommendations
- References and data sources
Introduction
Reporting period: 2019
Report author(s): Tarik Weekes (University of the West Indies)
Summary: The concern over fatal shootings by members of security forces in Jamaica is decades old, with a decline in deaths taking place after 2011, but no clear indication of what may have caused it. Deterrent and modernization efforts aimed at curbing these shootings have been ongoing, but wider systemic and contextual issues are influencing the continuity and response to these shootings.
Abstract
This report contextualizes fatal shooting incidents in Jamaica, particularly those involving police officers and the legal and policy efforts to counter the number of incidents yearly. This contextualization is presented by utilizing 2018 and 2019 data collected from one official source, press information on fatal shooting incidents, identification of relevant legislation and official reports published by local authorities. Jamaica has one of the highest homicide rates in the English-speaking Caribbean and data published by the police show guns feature in 75-80% of homicides recorded yearly. In 2018, fatal shooting by members of the police and soldiers regardless of being on or off duty was 13% of all deaths recorded involving the use of a gun. In 2019, the percentage of persons killed by security forces declined to 7.6%. The analysis of the data presented in this report shows that the fatal shooting rate was 4.39 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2018 and 2.56 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2019. The number of civilians killed was as much as 100 times more than the number of on-duty agents killed in 2018. The fatal shooting counts for 2018 and 2019 presented in this report are part of a larger downward trend in fatal shootings, involving members of the security forces but plaguing the decline is a lack of understanding of the deterrent factors responsible or not responsible. The continuation of fatal shootings in spite of security sector reforms that launched parliamentary commissioned, independent oversight of police conduct is also part of the ecosystem involving fatal shootings by members of the security forces in Jamaica. This report recognizes that there has been a change in the way fatal shootings are monitored but a lot more needs to occur in certain areas; such as with the, swiftness and certainty of justice and the type of data collected at the incident level. This improvement in data quality is important to help reduce fatal shootings by members of the security forces, in particular the police.
Background
Security is provided by different actors in Jamaica. These include the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) and the Department of Corrections and all three have separate and different vertical leadership structures which manage and coordinate operations for the specific security area they are responsible. Security is provided to protect citizens and property, within correctional institutions and for monitoring and protection of the island’s borders. Scholarly work and reports have illustrated a decades long working and operational relationship between the JCF and JDF before and after the country’s independence1. The JDF over the decades has continued to be used to augment JCF officers in periods of social unrest and in high crime areas2,3. This is partially due to the capacities of the JCF and the lingering difference between its desired (‘establishment’) and current strength. In the review period of this paper, 2018-2019 this lingering difference prevails although there has been a decline since 2017 when JCF was short 2702 members compared to 2302 in 2018 and 2201 in 2019 (see Table 1 below).
| Table 1: Trend in JCF Staffing | 20174 | 20185 | 20196 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current strength | 11389 | 11790 | 11890 |
| Establishment7 | 14091 | 14091 | 14091 |
| New enlisting | 335 | 362 | 697 |
| Persons leaving (resignation, retirement) | 497 | 274 | 309 |
The JCF is governed by the 1935 Constabulary Force Act8. The Act is divided into sections and sets out, among other matters, the constitution of the force, its duties and powers and discipline. The progress to a new Act to assist in transforming the Force to a service has been slow in spite of the advocacy for it in academia and by other stakeholders9. In the 1935 Act, the JCF’s design is described as paramilitary and its purpose is to keep the peace. Given the colonial setting of the Act’s creation, such language has been cited for reform10.
There have been several changes to the JCF to improve its integrity and public perception. These have come in response to a decline in the ratio of property to violent crimes in favour of increases in the latter since the 1970s and dominance from the 1990s11, the need to gain public trust for the reporting of crime, and the need to form partnerships to reduce the opportunity for criminality. The changes include the legislation establishing the Police Public Complaints Authority (PPCA) in 1992. The PPCA was an independent, non-police agency serving to among other functions, monitor the investigations by the JCF of any complaint12. Other innovations included the development of a Corporate Strategy and the piloting and subsequent adoption of community policing in the late 1990s. Community policing is embedded in officer training; a manual has been developed and across the JCF’s divisions there are Community Safety and Security branches. These units work alongside other actors such as schools, youth clubs, and not-for-profit organizations involved in violence reduction in order to sensitize the public on safety, to support collective efficacy and strengthen police citizen relations. Another organizational input to support JCF’s enhanced integrity and public perception included the continued operation of internal oversight mechanisms to investigate officer conduct. These mechanisms are complemented by external oversight bodies such as the Police Services Commission (PSC) with a mandate for the hiring, promotion and dismissal of officers, a Police Civilian Oversight Authority (PCOA) which has as one of its functions the monitoring of the standards of performance of the JCF and its maintenance of acceptable international standards)13,14. The Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) investigates police conduct including fatal shootings and injuries committed by police officers, soldiers and correctional officers.
In Jamaica annual fatal shooting numbers remain worrisome, but they also have been in decline since 2011 which is a year after the establishment of INDECOM. The Chart below shows data on fatal shootings by members of security forces extracted from an INDECOM report15. The Chart illustrates fatal shootings being higher than the 2011 count only in 2013 when it was 258.
The decline in fatal shootings has been attributed to INDECOM’s work which should have been received in a positive light but instead has been shrouded in blame for officers feeling demotivated. This is linked to the threat of being arrested and charged by INDECOM in high homicide context and pressure on the police to swiftly capture perpetrators. As Williams17 suggests, if officers are keen on operating within the law, oversight should not prevent them from doing their work. There is no evaluation publicly available providing empirical evidence for the decline seen in Chart 1. An evaluation would consider the factors such as changes within the JCF, its recruitment, attrition and training.
Part 1: Legal Frameworks
Global treaties
| 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) | State party | |
| ICCPR Optional Protocol 1 | Not party | |
| 1984 Convention Against Torture (CAT) | Not party | |
| CAT committee competent to receive individual complaints? | No | |
| CAT Optional Protocol 1 | Not party | |
Regional treaties
| 1969 Inter-American Convention on Human Rights | State party | |
National legal provisions
Relevant constitutional provisions or general laws
Jamaica has passed the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms (Constitutional Amendment) Act 2011 and in doing so, Chapter III of the Constitution was repealed and replaced by a new chapter that reflected input from public consultations and deliberations about comprehensive and effective protection of all fundamental rights of citizens. The right to life is one of the fundamental expectations expressed in Chapter III. This identification of the right to life in the constitution is a clear indication of its importance.
Relevant specific national legislation
The Constabulary Force Act does not indicate any regulation for the use of force. In the Independent Commission of Investigations Act 2010, Part III ‘Complaints’ and the provisions under it may be seen as regulating the use of force by police officers as a complaint can be made directly to the Commission alleging misconduct of an officer or officers. Following a complaint, an investigation may commence, and the Act gives the Commission the power to forward a copy of the complaint to the Director of Public Prosecution if it is deemed that the conduct complained about is an offence. Officers are aware that they could face disciplinary and legal action for every fatal shooting or wounding they are involved in.
Relevant national regulations
The Jamaica Constabulary Force has a Human Rights and Police Use of Force and Firearms Policy which incorporates the principles articulated in the United Nations Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials (Eighth United Nations Congress on Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders — Havana 27 August to 7 September 1990). In the policy, the instruction given requires members to apply non-violent means as far as possible before resorting to the use of force. In the policy, members are instructed to “minimize any interference with human rights, exercise restraint in such use and act in proportion to the seriousness of the offence and the lawful objective to be achieved, minimize damage and injury and ensure that medical aid is secured for any person requiring it at the earliest opportunity” (p.3).
The JCF also has a Book of Rules for the guidance and direction of its members. This document requires JCF members to exercise care in the handling of firearms and where a firearm is used to injure or kill an individual the officer must be prepared to prove that it was the last available option.
Legal interpretation and application
Regional court judgments
The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) is not the final Appellate Court for Jamaica. The JCF and its auxiliaries serve the entire island. The JCF has 19 police divisions and areas and these are led by senior officers ultimately answerable to the Commissioner of Police.
National court judgments
Jamaicans for Justice (Appellant) v Police Service Commission and another (Respondents) (Jamaica) 25 March 201919. This case involved a challenge brought by the non-governmental organization Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) to the decision by the Police Services Commission (PSC) to agree with the recommendation of the Commissioner of Police to promote Delroy Hewitt to Superintendent of Police. The case rested on what steps the PSC “as the entity tasked with deciding on the promotion of police officers, should take to inform itself about the officers recommended for promotion” (JFJ 2019). The challenge was raised by JFJ because of what it says is “a systemic problem of promoting officers against whom there were/are allegations of misconduct, to senior ranks within the Jamaica Constabulary Force, which undermines police reform and taints the promotion process within the police force”. In 2015, Jamaica’s Court of Appeal agreed with JFJ about the “seriousness of allegations” but declined to reverse the decision of the PSC “on the basis that its decisions were not deemed to be so unreasonable that it produced an absurdity — which the Court decided was the requirement in law for Judicial Review of the Police Service Commission’s decision”. These courts had rejected the assertion by JFJ that the Police Services Commission had a legal “duty to conduct, or to instruct another entity to conduct, independent, impartial and effective investigations into an officer’s misconduct when they are being considered for a promotion” (JFJ 2019). In 2017 JFJ appealed to the Privy Council and in March 2019 the Privy Council handed down a decision overruling the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal.
Oversight bodies
The Police Services Commission (PSC) is external to the JCF and is one of four commissions that fall under the Office of the Services Commission. Its functions include providing recommendations to the Governor General regarding appointments and/or promotions of JCF members above the rank of Inspector, appeals all ranks and selection of officers and members for training courses and study leave. Section 129(1) of the Jamaica Constitution establishes the PSC.
The Police Civilian Oversight Authority (PCOA) is external to the JCF and was established in 2006 to ensure accountability and adherence to policy guidelines and policing standards. The PCOA’s functions relating to the JCF and its auxiliaries include monitoring the implementation of policy, conducting inspections and monitoring the management and use of financial and other resources.
The Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) is external to the JCF. According to information on its website, the commission was established by the INDECOM Act which was passed on April 15 2010 and it began operations on August 16 201020. The INDECOM Act repealed the Police Public Complaints Act which established the Police Public Complaints Authority (PPCA). INDECOM investigates, produces reports and makes recommendations to offices such as the Director of Public Prosecutions regarding offences committed by members of the security forces. These offences may include causing death and injury to a person or persons and instances of abuse. INDECOM investigates 25 different categories of abuse. Among these categories include shooting incidents, detention issues, and abuse and property incidents. Shooting incidents include fatal shooting, shooting injury, discharge of a firearm, and accidental discharge.
Part 2: Policies and Procedures
Data collection and publication by official agencies
| 1. Are the number of deaths following any police use of force | ||
| Collected? | Partial, Medium | |
| Accessible through existing publicly available information? | Partial, Medium | |
| Is this a legal requirement? | Limited, Poor | |
| Can such information be requested from the authorities when not publicly available? | Partial, Medium | |
| If one can request it, what is the likelihood this information would be released? | Partial, Medium | |
| 2. If published, to what extent can the number of deaths be readily determined from official statistics? | Partial, Medium | |
| 3. Is it possible to identify specific individuals killed in official records? | Partial, Medium | |
| 4. Is demographic and other information for the deceased | ||
| Collected? | Partial, Medium | |
| Accessible through existing publicly available information? | Partial, Medium | |
| Is this a legal requirement? | No Provisions | |
| Can such information be requested from the authorities when not publicly available? | Partial, Medium | |
| If one can request it, what is the likelihood this information would be released? | Partial, Medium | |
| 5. Is demographic and other information on officers in use of force incidents | ||
| Collected? | Limited, Poor | |
| Accessible through existing publicly available information? | Limited, Poor | |
| Is this a legal requirement? | Limited, Poor | |
| Can such information be requested from the authorities when not publicly available? | Limited, Poor | |
| If one can request it, what is the likelihood this information would be released? | Limited, Poor | |
| 6. Is information on the circumstances | ||
| Collected? | Partial, Medium | |
| Publicly available? | Partial, Medium | |
| Is this a legal requirement? | Limited, Poor | |
| Can such information be requested from the authorities when not publicly available? | Partial, Medium | |
| If one can request it, what is the likelihood this information would be released? | Partial, Medium | |
| 7. Is information about the type(s) of force used | ||
| Collected? | Partial, Medium | |
| Accessible through existing publicly available information? | Partial, Medium | |
| Is this a legal requirement? | Partial, Medium | |
| Can such information be requested from the authorities when not publicly available? | Partial, Medium | |
| If one can request it, what is the likelihood this information would be released? | Partial, Medium | |
Data quality of official sources
| 8. How reliable are the sources used to produce official statistics about deaths? | Partial, Medium | |
| 9. Are there mechanisms for internal quality assurance / verification conducted | Partial, Medium | |
| 10. Is the methodology for data collection publicised? | Limited, Poor | |
| 11. How reliable are the overall figures produced? | Partial, Medium | |
Data analysis and lessons learnt
| 12. Do state or police agencies analyse data on the use of lethal force, to prevent future deaths? | Limited, Poor | |
| 13. Is there evidence that state/ police agencies act on the results of their analysis, including applying lessons learnt? | Limited, Poor | |
| 14. Are external bodies are able to reuse data for their own analyses? | Partial, Medium | |
| 15. Do external, non-governmental agencies collect and publish their own statistics on deaths following police use of force? | Partial, Medium | |
Investigations by official agencies
| 16. Is there a legal requirement for deaths to be independently investigated? | Partial, Medium | |
| 19. Are close relatives of the victims involved in the investigations? | Partial, Medium | |
| 20. Investigation reports into deaths | ||
| Are publicly available? | Limited, Poor | |
| Give reasons for the conclusions they have reached? | Partial, Medium | |
| Is this a legal requirement? | Partial, Medium | |
| Can such information be requested from the authorities when not publicly available? | Partial, Medium | |
| If one can request it, what is the likelihood this information would be released? | Partial, Medium | |
| 21. Is there information available on legal proceedings against agents / officials, pursuant to deaths? | Limited, Poor | |
| 22. Is there information available on legal proceedings against state agencies, pursuant to deaths? | Partial, Medium | |
| 23. Is there information available on disciplinary proceedings against agents/ officials, pursuant to deaths? | Limited, Poor | |
| 24. Number of prosecutions against agents / officials involved in the last ten years? | Data unavailable | |
| 25. Number of convictions against agents / officials involved in the last ten years? | Data unavailable | |
| 26. Number of prosecutions against agencies involved in the last ten years? | Data unavailable | |
| 27. Number of convictions against agencies involved in the last ten years? | Data unavailable | |
| 28. Number of cases in which states have been found to have breached human rights law on the use of lethal force? | Data unavailable | |
Detailed elaboration
Data collection and publication by official agencies
The data collection and publication of fatal shootings and non-lethal incidents by official sources is rated as ‘partial’. This stems from the absence of data that could improve the understanding of fatal shooting incidents. Similar variables produced on victims of fatal shootings should also be available on security agents. These variables include age, sex, rank. Ethnicity and race are also variables absent in the publication of data. While contextually race may not be significant given the overwhelming black population in Jamaica, there are still sub populations of different races and it is important to classify shootings and injuries by such variables21.
Comparably the publication of data on fatal police shootings and sub lethal use of force by an external oversight agency as seen in Jamaica is not the same in many countries within Latin America and the English-speaking Caribbean. Other English-speaking, former British colonial Caribbean countries such as Trinidad and Tobago have data published and it can also be requested. In Trinidad and Tobago, the Police Public Complaints Authority, which is an independent body set up by parliament, publishes yearly statistics on allegations of criminal offences. The Authority investigates allegations and upon completion recommends either no further action or that the matter be referred, which could be to the Commissioner of Police (COP) only, the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) only, or to both the DPP and COP22. Saint Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have police oversight structures with civilian involvement but data on complaints against the police is not readily accessible. Barbados has the independent Police Complaints Authority and it publishes annual reports. In its 2019 report, complaints in the category of Aggression/Threats/Verbal Abuse/ Harassment had the most complaints for 2019 and 2018 but notably, there was no distinct category on fatal shootings23.
Despite achievements to date, there are improvements to be made regarding the available data in Jamaica. The literature on fatal police shootings points to data on fatal shootings that includes individual, organizational, situational and institutional characteristics. In contrast, the available data for fatal police shootings in Jamaica suggest that there are a lot of gaps in supporting individual, community and organizational levels of analysis to better understand fatal police shootings. INDECOM produces reports that give details on security organizations’ involvement in fatal police shootings and this can be tracked for the last 10 years. Their reports also give an indication of disciplinary action taken by these organizations and fatal shootings during planned operations. Less is known about organizational change interventions to reduce fatal police shootings annually. Data development and harmonization to support different levels of analysis may not be within the remit of INDECOM but could improve the reliability of data about fatal police shootings. The police for example have the Inspectorate and Professional Standards Oversight Bureau (IPROB) which does its own collection and analysis regarding lethal force and at least for this review period, discrepancies with incident counts have been identified with the fatal shootings data produced by INDECOM and the JCF. However, the support for data development and harmonization and publication of the data is informed by some value placed on having such data and having the resources to do so. Fatal shooting data is published quarterly by INDECOM. INDECOM has its own staffing and operating procedure regarding data and user access which has so far been suggestive of independence, inclusion and accountability.
Aside from the resources supporting greater accountability in policing seen with the investment in internal and external oversight mechanism, there has also been investment in body cameras to be worn by police officers. However, implementation and functionality issues have affected this move to greater transparency in police-citizen relations24.
Data quality of official sources
There are aspects of data quality that would lend themselves to higher ratings than others, but overall, it may be argued that the data is still limited/poor. Data on fatal police shootings and sub lethal wounding is published by INDECOM on a quarterly basis and this provides an opportunity for data on incidents published to be scrutinized by the wider public. This is the only agency routinely publishing data on fatal shootings by law enforcement officers. The data published includes counts on fatal shootings by the Jamaica Constabulary Force, the Jamaica Defence Force and the Department of Corrections, and includes trends, on duty and off duty officer involvement, shootings in planned operations and also summary tables updating on the Commission’s recommendations and the status of follow up or action. The opening up of the data to the public through publication allows for some credibility to be attached to how incidents are recorded and the accuracy of information. For this reason, data quality would be regarded as partial/medium.
While transparency with data could be regarded as medium, data quality in terms of what is collected is limited. Data on characteristics of police officers or soldiers (such as their gender and rank) is not provided in the routine reporting on fatal officer or soldier shootings so it is unclear if these incidents can be associated with males more than females and what trends are evident. Counts are provided of the number of officers with several breaches but no data is provided, for example, on years in service, ranks and fitness test counts of officers involved in breaches. It is possible to analyze the data to understand spatial characteristics such as differences between urban and rural.
The suppliers of data on fatal shootings by security agents have internal units responsible for compiling counts on fatal shootings and producing reports. The JCF has a Statistics and Information Unit. For this report the number of staff devoted to data collection and reporting was not probed. Data storage and systems for such may also impact data quality. These issues were not closely examined for this report but are important to a comprehensive appreciation of data quality.
Getting to routinely collected, robust data necessitates that there is an agreement on definitions and the organizational characteristics required to support the data generation. However, it is also about how frequent data quality checks (DQCs) and Data Quality Audits (DQA) are done and how the results from these assist with improving data quality. The results from any DQC or DQA related to fatal shootings are not available publicly and it therefore becomes difficult to include this as an aspect of data quality regarding fatal police shootings. Based on what has been discussed in the previous paragraph about triangulation of data across different sources, transparency and limitations with participant characteristics in fatal shooting incidents data quality is judged to be ‘limited, poor’.
Data analysis and lessons learned
Evaluations that could explain the decline in fatal shootings by police after 2011 have not been done, although anecdotally some attribute the decline to work by INDECOM. Less is known about the professionalization of the police force, attrition and retirement of police officers with a high frequency of involvement in fatal shootings and how these factor into the conversation about decline. The consideration of these factors is important. First, the absence of this comprehensive analysis makes it difficult to learn lessons from Jamaica’s experience with the decline in fatal shootings. Second, addressing Jamaica’s crime problem has turned a lot of attention towards policing and effective strategies. Between 1991 and 2008/9 there have been at least three different assessment reports producing proposals and recommendations to improve police conduct, police-citizen relations and use of firearms. These are identified in the JCF Strategic Review 2008 and include:
- A proposal for greater, firmer accountability in the possession, storage and use of firearms stemming from a finding of widespread breaches of JCF policy with regards to firearms possession and use. (Hirst report 1991)
- A recommendation supporting stricter enforcement of the JCF Code of Conduct and the United Nations Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials made by the National Task Force on Crime (the Task force was established in 1991 to advise on strategies to maintain law and order in Jamaica). The report also recommended the continuous upgrading of skills or police officers and that such training include the rights and protection of citizens.
- A recommendation from the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) evaluation of violent crime and murders in Kingston, Jamaica’s capital city, for JCF to publish statistics on fatal shootings, wounding, accidental shootings and subsequent criminal or disciplinary outcomes. Another recommendation entailed the review of police shooting incidents by an internal shooting review board.
Notwithstanding the aforementioned, the JCF Strategic Review 2008 was an assessment which led to organizational changes within the JCF that may have contributed to behavior change amongst police officers and reduction in fatal police shooting incidents.
Investigations by official agencies
The Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) is legally mandated to investigate use of force by police officers, soldiers and correctional officers. INDECOM is external to the JCF and is not funded through the same budget as the JCF nor does JCF have control over its budget. INDECOM has its Commissioner with dedicated staff, office space, equipment and vehicles. In that sense, INDECOM does not share resources with the JCF or JDF or DCS. It is autonomous.
Even with the level of autonomy INDECOM enjoys there are still issues with efficiency in the resolution of cases that it is investigating. For example, in its 2018 quarterly report25, the section on recommendations made for completed commission reports on fatal shootings highlights a few issues. First, in the October-December 2018 period, there were five cases highlighted with recommendations and of these cases incidents were dated 2010, 2011, 2013 (2) and 2015. Comparably, there were 18 cases with recommendations reported for the same period in 2019 and the report also had cases of incidents happening 6–9 years earlier. There is a difficulty with the time lapse between an incident and the recommendation made by INDECOM. Coupled with the slow response to disciplinary proceedings by the JCF on the basis of INDECOM’s recommendations, a deterrent effect for engaging in reckless use of force is diluted. In its quarterly report with the title Compliance with Use of Deadly Force Policies26 published in 2019, INDECOM noted the JCF was yet to respond to approximately half of the matters referred between 2014–2018 for disciplinary measures.
Legal proceedings, prosecutions and convictions
Data and information sharing are hurdles that key stakeholders working with a criminal justice response have had to overcome. There have been notable cases and the rulings from these have been published. Examples include the 2016 case involving the Commissioner of Investigations (COI) (claimant), the Commissioner of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (First Defendant) and the Attorney General of Jamaica (Second Defendant) about the statutory interpretation of sections 4, 12 and 21 of the INDECOM Act27, heard in the Supreme Court of Judicature of Jamaica. The Commissioner of Investigations wanted access to documents but the Commissioner of Police (COP) refused on the basis that some of the documents may be subject to public interest immunity and, even if not, the documents may contain confidential information. The COI requested the documents following information from informants and witnesses alleging that police officers were selected to murder civilians. These officers were members of a Street Crime Unit and Proactive Investigations Team. The investigation by the COI sought to address, among other purposes, 1) whether the deceased persons’ right to life was breached and 2) whether the supervisors breached the deceased persons’ right to life in the selection of the team, their supervision, the review and planning of the operation. The COI wrote to the COP requesting (i) a report on the mission of and operating structure of the Street Crime Unit and Proactive Investigations Team in the Clarendon police division between 2009 and 2016, and (ii) copies of disciplinary records of the members of the unit prior to joining and thereafter. The court decided the disciplinary records of the officers alleged to be involved as well as those who were not involved but who were members of the unit between the period would be relevant.
Non-official sources
In Jamaica there is no public database operated by media groups tracking fatal police shootings. The absence of such a public database led by non-governmental organizations is a gap in the monitoring of fatal police shootings. There is also no public database on injuries received by hospitals that may have led to deaths. A public database on registration of deaths due to fatal police shootings is also not available. Regarding the hospital and registration of deaths data, although not public both can be requested. For this report, data was not requested from these two official sources, but practitioners consulted have said data on deaths and injuries to civilians by police and soldiers is available It is difficult, however, to determine the quality of the data that is available without accessing the data. Press sources assist with accountability in the monitoring of fatal shootings by members of security forces but the publishing of such information can be constrained by space and other stories deemed more newsworthy. For the 2018 and 2019 period, the review of press cases printed in the Jamaica Gleaner and Jamaica Observer, two national newspapers revealed 24 and 8 percent of fatal shooting cases involving on and off duty officers produced from official sources were captured in newspaper reports.
Part 3: Comparative indicators
| I-1a. CK: Number of civilians killed by law enforcement agents on duty, by gunshot | 70 |
| I-1b. CKt: Number of civilians killed by law enforcement agents, regardless of means and whether or not on duty | 86 |
| I-1c. CW: Number of civilians wounded by law enforcement agents on duty, by gunshot | 62 |
| I-1d. CWt: Number of civilians wounded by law enforcement agents, whether or not on duty and regardless of means | 75 |
| I-2. CK per 100000 inhabitants | 3.1 |
| I-3. CK per 1000 law enforcement agents | 5.2 |
| I-4. CK per 1000 arrests | 32.7 |
| I-5. CK per 1000 weapons seized | 129.1 |
| I-6. AK: Number of law enforcement officers unlawfully killed on duty by firearm | 1 |
| I-6b. AKt: Number of law enforcement officers unlawfully killed, whether or not on duty and regardless of means | 4 |
| I-7. AK per 1000 agents | 1 |
| A1. Percentage of homicides due to state intervention | 7.6 |
| A2. Ratio between CK and AK | 86 |
| A3. Civilian lethality index: Ratio between CK and CW | 1.15 |
| A4. Lethality ratio: Ratio between Civilian lethality index and law enforcement agents lethality index | 0.38 |
| A5. Average number of civilians killed by intentional gunshot, per incident | 1.14 |
Published data on fatal shootings involving public security agents in Jamaica point to more of these being committed by police officers than soldiers. In 2018, three of the 137 fatal shooting by security agents involved soldiers and two fatal shootings involved joint police and military operations. In 2019, there was one fatal shooting involving the JDF and none reported of joint police military involvement. Table 2 below presents data on wounding but the counts presented are restricted to shooting injuries. Table 2 also presents data on male and female involvement in fatal shooting encounters involving civilians and members of the police and military. Female victims of all fatal shootings by members of security forces regardless of being on or off duty was 1.45 % in 2018 but increased to 2.3% in 2019. Females featured more as victims in shooting injuries cases over the two year period compared to fatal shootings involving them as victims. In 2018, 10.5% of shooting injury cases involved females but there were no cases in 2019.
There is a data from further year available:
| Year | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| I-1a. CK: Number of civilians killed by law enforcement agents on duty, by gunshot | 120 | 70 |
| I-1b. CKt: Number of civilians killed by law enforcement agents, regardless of means and whether or not on duty | 137 | 86 |
| I-1c. CW: Number of civilians wounded by law enforcement agents on duty, by gunshot | 59 | 62 |
| I-1d. CWt: Number of civilians wounded by law enforcement agents, whether or not on duty and regardless of means | 76 | 75 |
| I-2. CK per 100000 inhabitants | 5 | 3.1 |
| I-3. CK per 1000 law enforcement agents | 8.5 | 5.2 |
| I-4. CK per 1000 arrests | 48.27 | 32.7 |
| I-5. CK per 1000 weapons seized | 190.2 | 129.1 |
| I-6. AK: Number of law enforcement officers unlawfully killed on duty by firearm | 0 | 1 |
| I-6b. AKt: Number of law enforcement officers unlawfully killed, whether or not on duty and regardless of means | 3 | 4 |
| I-7. AK per 1000 agents | 0 | 1 |
| A1. Percentage of homicides due to state intervention | 13 | 7.6 |
| A2. Ratio between CK and AK | 137/0 | 86 |
| A3. Civilian lethality index: Ratio between CK and CW | 1.80 | 1.15 |
| A4. Lethality ratio: Ratio between Civilian lethality index and law enforcement agents lethality index | 1.80/0 | 0.38 |
| A5. Average number of civilians killed by intentional gunshot, per incident | 1.8 | 1.14 |
Number of civilians killed and injured
Based on data that is available for analysis, there is no specific age group for civilians who are victims of fatal police shootings. For the purpose of this report, we exported the age of all fatal shootings victims, regardless of being killed by on or off duty members of the security forces. The data set was cleaned to remove incidents with incomplete information on age. Two types of datasets were produced for 2018 and 2019. One dataset on fatal shootings and another on shooting injury. Below, findings and descriptive statistics from analysis of the ages of victims in fatal incidents and shooting injuries are presented.
- In 2018, 80 or 58.3% of the cases of fatal shootings involving police and soldiers, on and off duty had information on age of victims. One of the fatal shootings was attributed to a soldier and when removed the total cases would represent 57.6% of the total fatal shooting cases captured by INDECOM.
In the 2018 dataset with the selected cases based on age information the lowest age in the dataset was 5 years old but a note on the case mentions that it was an accidental discharge by the child. The next lowest age is 16 years old and the highest age for a victim of fatal shootings was 64 years-old. The average age of victims was 30 years old. In this dataset on fatal shootings, 31.2% of the cases involved youth, defined in Jamaica as persons 15–24 years old. Persons 30 years and younger represented 62.5% of cases in the dataset.
In the dataset on 2018 shooting and injuries, 61 cases were analyzed. This represented 80.2% of cases involving on or off duty police or soldiers in shooting and injury incidents. There was one case of a 7 year-old and the next youngest age was 16 years-old. The oldest victim of a shooting injury for which age information was available was 61 years old. Persons 15–24 years old accounted for 32.8% of shooting and injury cases in the dataset. The mean age for shooting and injury victims was 30 years old.
There were four females in the dataset with the youngest victim being 7 years old, while the oldest was 61 years old.
- For 2019, there were 57 cases with data on age representing 66.2% of the total 86 cases of fatal shootings regardless of them being on or off duty. The percentage of cases drops to 65.1% after removal of a single fatal shooting involving a soldier.
The lowest age in the dataset analyzed containing both soldier and police fatal shootings was 16 and the highest age was 66. These cases had one count each. The mean age was 28.1 years old. Youth constituted 43.9% of the 59 cases, reflecting an increase over 2018. Persons 30 years and younger represented 75.4% of all cases analyzed in this dataset for age. This is an increase of 12.9 percentage points over 2018.
Cases with females were not in the 59 cases selected with information on age of victims.
In terms of shooting injuries, 49 out of 75 cases (65%) involving police and soldiers on or off duty had information on victims age. The percentage of cases with information on age increases slightly to 66.2% when soldiers are removed from the analysis. Frequency tables produced showed that the lowest age for a victim of a shooting injury was 12 years old while the oldest victims was 47 years old. Both of these cases only appeared once. The mean age of victims of shooting injury was 28.7 years old and youth accounted for 28.6% of the total 49 cases.
Two cases with females shot and injured had information on age. One female was 19 years-old while the other was 31 years-old.
Number of law enforcement officers killed and injured
Overall, the data from sources such as INDECOM give little support to the idea that members in the security forces die in an excessive way compared to civilians. In terms of average number of civilians killed by gunshot per incident, the total number civilians killed in shooting events is also supportive of the excess in fatal shootings. Approximately 1.80 civilians died on average, in 76 fatal shooting incidents in 2018 involving on and off duty officers. The average increases to 1.90 when deaths are considered for on-duty officers only. In 2019, an average of 1.13 civilians died in 76 incidents involving both on and off duty officers, and there is only a marginal increase over this to 1.14 in the average number of civilians killed per incident involving on duty officers. Seventy civilians died in 61 incidents involving only on duty officers in 2019.
Indicators of use and abuse
The comparative indicator data on fatal shooting illustrate an ongoing problem in police-citizen relations in Jamaica. More civilians die in fatal shootings than civilians wounded. This discrepancy can be examined in different ways. One way is to examine the supportive norms around fatal shooting. While the institutional framework has been supportive of organizational innovations, polices, rules and external oversight to assist with countering the high number of fatal police shootings, incidents continue, suggesting that even though policy is being updated and aligned with international standards, there is a slip between this and adherence. In JCF’s human rights and firearms policy, shooting someone is advocated as the last resort. In the period 2018-19, the context of policing underwent increased support for a stronger hand and security force presence in suppressing crime and violence. An example of the stronger security force presence is exemplified with the adoption and use of States of Public Emergency (SOPE) across select parishes in the country where violent crimes, in particular homicides were on the increase. A feature of the SOPE is joint police-military operations. Interestingly however, the data on fatal shootings by security force members published by INDECOM for 2018 and 2019 show only one fatal shooting connected with the joint forces in 2018 and zero in 2019.
Another way to approach this discrepancy in civilians wounded and civilians killed is to examine resistance indicators such as cooperation with police when they announce themselves and seek to arrest individuals. INDECOM reports indicate that police have been shot at while on patrol upon approaching vehicles and by wanted offenders. There are also questionable situations in which fatal police shootings occur. In 2018, 19 of the 137 persons killed by members of security forces had no weapons. The percentage of civilians killed with no weapon has fallen in recent years. In 2016, it was 24.3% and fell to 14.88% and fell further to 13.86% in 2018. These statistics are important but if it is also approached with a binary lens what is of equal importance is the estimated 70–80% who had some kind of weapon. As mentioned earlier, in Jamaica guns have been the weapon of choice in the killing of persons. In 2018, 78.7% of homicides involved a gun and the percentage climbed to 83.5% in 2019. Data from the police has also suggested that firearm presence is pervasive in the society. Between 2010 and 2020, a total of 7218 firearms were seized or recovered by the police. Pistols and revolvers comprise the bulk of firearm types seized. For the 2010–2020 period, pistols accounted for 61.5% and revolvers 16.3% suggestive of a combination of preference and accessibility mediating on these firearm presence. Rifles, semi-automatic machine guns, shot guns and home-made guns are the other firearms police report seizing and recovering. In 2017, 13.9% of the total 1117 admissions to correctional institutions were for illegal possession of a firearm or ammunition and in 2018 the percentage rose to 19% of the total 1242 admissions to these institutions and was the highest of admissions to these facilities. In 2019, illegal possession of a firearm or ammunition was 15.7% of all admissions and for a second year the highest of all admissions33,34. While the corrections data by itself is not a strong indicator for pervasiveness of firearms in the society it does underscore the issue of illegal firearm access and attendant problems that arise with it. The conversation on firearm presence and carrying is a useful one in the Jamaica context because it supports a threat perception argument held by civilians and police officers35.
At first glance there is no special concentration of social and economic conditions of fatal police shootings. The distribution is island-wide and at a smaller scale of analysis, such as urban, rural residential and non-residential. There are no studies in Jamaica probing the concentration of fatal shootings by police and soldiers and there are no studies or work showing how particular geographic and participant characteristics cluster around fatal shooting incidents. The absence of such insight is part of the reason why fatal shooting incidents in Jamaica remain understudied compared to North America. To be fair, the research output on fatal shooting in the Global South overall lags behind North America. Still, statistics on fatal shootings appear to be more accessible in Jamaica than other countries spread across Latin and Central America. The reasons for the differences vary across country but include capacity issues and political regime differences that influence information sharing.
Summary and recommendations
This report on fatal shootings in Jamaica has illustrated more civilians dying than being wounded in encounters with the security forces, of which the majority of incidents are attributed to police officers. Further analysis of individual characteristics points to victims of fatal shootings being male dominated and the number of female as victims being low. The data analyzed revealed the average age of civilian victims being 30 years old. In terms of fatal shootings and youth, the latter featured in 30–43% of cases and the percentage of youth in shooting injury was lower at 28–32%. This report did not present the characteristics of police officers and soldiers who are victims in encounters with civilians. This data was unavailable. Among other data gaps evident in the preparation and writing of this report include race and ethnicity of participants in fatal shooting or shooting injury encounters. This data was also unavailable.
Based on the indicators for accessibility, transparency and justice, fatal shootings by members of security forces have been occurring in the context of external oversight and slow disciplinary and prosecutorial gains. However, there are notable gaps in what data is available. Part of the context is also the high number of deaths involving firearms in the country and an appreciation of the state contribution to this problem through fatal shooting by members of the security forces should be of concern.
Going forward the information is this report suggests that:
- A greater amount of resources should be directed to increasing the number of cases brought before disciplinary hearings. This would lead to a reduction in the backlog of cases being investigated. The numbers of fatal shootings occurring annually are high and more cases are being received, reported or investigated compared to recommendations and sanctions that are publicly known.
- Resources should be allocated towards the convergence of datasets on fatal police shootings so that there is a reduction in discrepancies in counts provided by the police and external oversight bodies such as INDECOM.
- More research needs to be done on fatal shootings to bring a wider understanding of individual, organizational and situational characteristics associated with these shootings. This could begin with capacity strengthening within units in the JCF and INDECOM for example, responsible for research and compilation of data.
References, data sources and downloads
1 Humberto Garcia Muñiz. Defense Policy and Planning in the Caribbean: An Assessment of the Case of Jamaica on Its 25th Independence Anniversary. Caribbean Studies, 21(1/2), (Jan–June1988): 67–123. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25612930
2 For more information on this or to support this statement, the use of States of Emergency can be considered.
3 Here, a high crime area refers communities within the 19 police divisions of the JCF. Over the last twenty years there have been five problematic police divisions based on homicide annual counts. Within these police divisions are communities which contribute more than others to homicide counts and are subject to cordons, curfews.
4 Planning Institute of Jamaica, Economic and Social Survey (Kingston, 2017).
5 Planning Institute of Jamaica, Economic and Social Survey of Jamaica (Kingston, 2018).
6 Planning Institute of Jamaica, Economic and Social Survey of Jamaica (Kingston, 2019).
7 Establishment is used to indicate the number of members the security organization is supposed to have.
8 The Constabulary Force Act (1935)
9 Anthony Harriott, From Force to Service. Reforming the Jamaican Police, (Kingston: Caribbean Policy Research Institute, 2018).
10 See Harriott, From Force to Service for further information on the change needed.
11 See Anthony Harriott, Police and Crime Control in Jamaica. Problems of Reforming Ex-Colonial Constabularies (Kingston: The University of the West Indies Press), 3–25.
12 See the Police Public Complains Act, accessed September 1, 2023, https://laws.moj.gov.jm/legislation/statutes/P/Police%20Public%20Complaints%20Act.pdf
13 Police Service Commission., Office of the Services Commission (website), accessed September 15, 2023, https://www.osc.gov.jm/index.php/police-service-commission/
14 Police Civilian Oversight Authority, The Ministry of National Security, accessed September 1, 2023, https://www.mns.gov.jm/node/34
15 INDECOM Jamaica, The INDECOM Quarterly 4th October-December 2020 (Kingston, INDECOM, 2020) p.5
16 idem
17 Terrence F. Williams, “Crime threatens social order; its solution must be justice” The Jamaica Gleaner, October 14, 2016, https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20161016/terrence-f-williams-crime-threatens-social-order-its-solution-must-be-justice ( accessed 17 September 2023)
18 Stephen Vasciannie, “Jamaica and International Human Rights”, The Jamaica Observer, August 30,2020. https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/columns/jamaica-and-international-human-rights/#:~:text=Jamaica%20withdrew%20from%20the%20First%20Optional%20Protocol%20to%20the%20ICCPR%20in%201997.
19 “JFJ Wins Landmark Case: Court Rules that Full Investigations Into Police Misconduct Necessary Prior to Promotions”, Jamaicans for Justice, accessed September 2, 2023, https://jamaicansforjustice.org/privy-councils-ruling/
20 “Commission”, About Us, INDECOM Jamaica, accessed August 1, 2023, https://www.indecom.gov.jm/about-us/commission
21 Monique D.A. Kelly, “Examining Race in Jamaica: How Racial Category and Skin Color Structure Social Inequality”. Race and Social Problems,12 (2020): 300-312. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12552-020-09287-z
22 Independent Police Complaints Authority, accessed November 13, 2023, https://www.pca.org.tt/statistics
23 Police Complaints Authority Annual Report 2019, accessed November 13, 2023, https://www.barbadosparliament.com/uploads/sittings/attachments/364922eb216ddd9da6b1a0b067469e9e.pdf
24INDECOM Jamaica, “ INDECOM welcomes body worn cameras, inclusion needed”, INDECOM, February 21,2017, https://www.indecom.gov.jm/press_release/indecom-welcomes-body-worn-cameras-inclusion-needed
25 INDECOM Jamaica, The INDECOM Quarterly 4th 2018 The Year In Review (Kingston: INDECOM, 2018)
26 INDECOM Jamaica, The INDECOM Quarterly 3rd July-September 2019, Compliance With Use of Deadly Force Policies (Kingston: INDECOM 2019).
27 Statutory Interpretation – Independent Commission of Investigations Act – Interpretation of Section 4,12 and 21 of the Statute – Whether Independent Commissioner Can Obtain Documents Under Any Of Those Provisions (2016) JMSC Civ 20
28 Planning Institute of Jamaica, Economic and Social Survey of Jamaica 2021 (Kingston, 2021), 20.3.
29 Mean population is used for calculations of the 2018 and 2019 rates.
30 Rates calculated based on data in the PIOJ Economic and Social Surveys 2018 and 2019.
31 Homicides use in this indicator refers to intentional homicide defined by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime as unlawful death purposefully inflicted on a person by another person. If we start from the premise that all fatal shootings by security force members were done as a last resort, then they may deemed justifiable and therefore they are excluded from intentional homicide. This indicator is focused only on the homicides involving guns and together with fatal shooting by security forces provides a picture of the number and percentage of individuals dying as a result of the use of a firearm. In 2018, 1015 and in 2019, 1119 homicides with guns were recorded by the JCF.
32 The average is based on dividing the number of persons killed by police and soldiers regardless of being on duty or off duty into the total number of incidents. In 2018, 137 people died in 76 incidents involving on and off duty officers. In 2019, 86 people died in 76 incidents involving both on and off duty officers.
33 Planning Institute of Jamaica, Economic and Social Survey of Jamaica 2018 (Kingston, 2018), 401
34 Planning Institute of Jamaica, Economic and Social Survey of Jamaica 2019 (Kingston,2019), 24.15
35 The threat perception held by officers was exemplified in their response to INDECOM’s powers and issues raised by Terrence Williams in the aforementioned newspaper article. This threat of facing persons armed has also been communicated to the researcher in a previous study. Aside from this enhanced individual characteristic, situations environments and poor police citizen relations in a community also contribute to a threat perception by officers.