BAD BAIL BARGAIN

National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang railed against the ease with which suspected criminals could be granted bail as he called for laws to reflect Jamaica’s crime crisis.

His soundings are bound to further rattle criminal attorneys already steaming from news that the Government is seeking to give the Crown the right of appeal.

While acknowledging the constitutional right of Jamaicans to bail, Chang described the current regime as “nonsensical”.

In a swipe at legal conservatives, Chang contended that the crime realities in the United Kingdom and Jamaica were starkly different.

“UK … they have 33 murders in a population of nearly 100 million. When a gun murder happens, it becomes national news. When I have 30 per week, I feel good. Therefore, you cannot have the same principle,” Chang contended.

The national security minister, who made his contribution to the Sectoral Debate on Tuesday, said the suspects on bail are killing more people. He did not provide any evidentiary proof for his claims.

“[A] man commits and come before you … . You give him bail this week. Him go out and commit another crime, him come back next week, you give him another bail till him kill five, six people,” a frustrated Chang lamented.

The national security minister alluded that a regime had to be found to have tougher bail conditions within the ambit of the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

He said the country cannot afford for people charged with murder to be committing more crimes while out on bail.

“Our laws must reflect some of the Jamaican culture and realities,” Chang declared.

Chang also hit out against a judge who he accused of using the obiter dicta to lecture the executive branch of Government on how it should conduct its affairs.

“That aspect of the law is there to allow judges who are supposed to be our best minds to sometimes give a bit direction without crossing the boundary into the executive, not to allow them to lecture the executive and criticise government policy,” the minister said.

He did not name the judge.

In the meantime, Chang, who is also the deputy prime minister, said that Jamaica was witnessing its lowest record of serious crimes in more than two decades.

He attributed the gains to the Government’s multibillion-dollar investment in national security over the last four years.

“Between 2015 and 2020, total serious crimes declined by approximately 24 per cent, moving from 6,667 in 2015 to 5,086 in 2020. This is the lowest recording of serious crimes in over 20 years,” Chang stated.

“Over the last five years, serious crimes, which include murder, shooting, rape, robbery, and break-ins, have declined by an average of five per cent per annum,” Chang added.

Year on year, reports of rape have fallen by 44 per cent, while robberies have declined by 19 per cent.

But Jamaica’s notoriety for violence has caused murders and shootings to be the ultimate indices on which public opinion on safety hangs.

Despite curfews and lockdowns, up to May 19, murders climbed by one per cent, from 510 to 514, and shootings inched up by two per cent - from 458 to 468.

As a part of additional measures to modernise the Jamaica Constabulary Force, the long-awaited electronic ticketing system is to be rolled out in June, Chang said.

Having missed several deadlines for the implementation of the system, Chang described the process as “long and tedious”.

The Traffic Ticket Management System is a centralised web-based platform designed to monitor traffic tickets from the point of issuance to either the payment of fines at tax offices or adjudication in court.

“It was not only frustrating, but instructive,” Chang said in the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

Police vehicles are now being equipped with technology to access information in a timely manner during a traffic stop, the minister also announced.