Police record 20+ fatal shootings for 12 straight months
Published:Wednesday | December 3, 2025 | 12:09 AMAndre Williams/Staff Reporter
For 12 consecutive months, from December 2024 to November 2025, the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) says Jamaica recorded 20 or more police fatal shootings, with December 2025 starting with two incidents on the first day.
As of December 1, 2025, the country has recorded 282 fatal police shootings when compared to 169 for the corresponding period in 2024.
This represents a 67 per cent increase year on year.
For the entire 2024, a total of 189 persons were killed by state agents, with the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) responsible for the greater majority.
On Monday, two more fatal police shootings baring some resemblance were added to the yearly tally, one in Scott’s Hall District, Castleton, St Mary, and the other in Salt Spring, St James.
In both incidents the police reported that the now-deceased men pointed a firearm and both occurring without the use of body worn cameras, continuing a pattern that INDECOM describes as deeply troubling.
At the halfway point of this year (January 1-June 30) one hundred and sixty-two police fatalities were being probed.
INDECOM notes that a major factor complicating its investigations is the continued trend of police teams conducting operations without body-worn cameras.
In St Mary, the deceased known only by his alias ‘Dadda’/’Dodd’ was reportedly seen with a firearm and a report was made to the police.
IGNORED REQUESTS
The Gleaner understands that the police visited the premises and the now deceased allegedly ignored requests by the lawmen to drop the firearm.
The police say he pointed the gun in their direction and was fatally shot.
The incident in St James surrounds a planned operation for 21-year-old Jodane ‘Sizzla’ James.
The police say that acting on a warrant for the now deceased, they entered a house and during a search of the rooms, a man reportedly pointed a firearm at them.
The police say they fired in the direction of James, who was pronounced dead at hospital.
A firearm was allegedly seized in both incidents.
According to INDECOM, the absence of video evidence makes it significantly more difficult to independently verify the accounts given by the police or assess whether the use of force was justified.
INDECOM said both incident scenes were visited by its personnel and items of evidential value seized and secured.
The investigation body also said the hands of the deceased were swabbed, and they are awaiting the post-mortems.
The policemen involved were served with notices and are scheduled to attend interviews and give statements.
Some relatives of deceased persons as well as communities affected by the shootings have echoed deep concerns.
Some family members repeatedly insist that their loved ones were killed without provocation, some describing the incidents as “cold-blooded” or “evil”.
One of the most discussed cases this year remains the Cherry Tree Lane fatal shooting, where 23 police officers were deployed on an operation.
During that September 15 operation, 22-year-old Jamar Farquharson was shot and killed inside his home.
The incident triggered public outrage and raised questions about operational planning and accountability.
The JCF, after some time, also publicly acknowledged the incident and offered condolences to the family of the deceased.
INDECOM said in a recent report that the sheer volume of fatal shooting incidents is now slowing the pace of investigations into Farquharson’s case and others. With 282 new reports so far this year, and many cases still active from previous years, investigators are, seemingly, struggling to keep up.
INDECOM notes that while it is committed to completing all investigations thoroughly, the current rate of fatal encounters is overwhelming existing resources and stretching investigative teams thin.
With one year of consistent 20-plus fatal police shootings per month, the commission says the situation is a cause for concern.
INDECOM is continuously urging any eyewitness to formally participate in the investigative process by providing any known information in the form of photos, videos, or otherwise available to these or other fatal shootings.