BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – IN recent times, SKNVibes has been observing the manner in which some members of the police force in St. Kitts have been executing their duties at crime scenes, especially homicides.
Generally speaking, police officers in any given country are mandated to keep the peace, protect the residents and property, enforce and maintain the law, and investigate crimes.
This article is not aimed at discrediting all members of the local police force, but to simply bring to light the observed unprofessional manner in which many junior police officers and some Ordinary Ranks in the Defence Force behave at crime scenes in St. Kitts.
Policies & SOPs
Every military and para-military organisation has policies within which standing operating procedures (SOPs) for every operation and activity have been produced to guide its members; and the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force is no different.
It is common knowledge that actions taken at the onset of an investigation at a crime scene play a very important role in solving the case, and thorough and careful investigation is the key to ensuring that potential physical evidence is not contaminated or destroyed, or potential witnesses overlooked.
Whenever a crime [homicide for example] is committed and reported, the first responders are usually officers stationed within the jurisdiction that the offence took place.
Even if it is one officer, he/she must take immediate steps to protect and preserve the scene from contamination for the purposes of processing and collecting evidence.
The SOP dictates that these officers must promptly, but cautiously, enter the crime scene while at the same time observing the presence of persons, vehicles and their type, as well as events, environmental conditions and potential evidence.
They must also be aware of anyone or vehicle leaving the crime scene, especially if the person or vehicle is related to the crime.
Additionally, the most senior officer on the ground must take command of the situation and ensure that non-essential persons, including officers, will be cleared from the scene.
The senior officer will inform the CID, which will dispatch a team of investigators armed with appropriate personal protection equipment, such as gloves, shoe covers, etc., which will be worn during the collection of evidence where blood and body fluids are present. Female investigators will at times have their heads properly covered so as not to have broken hair strands falling at the crime scene.
Additionally, the investigators will be armed with cameras [video if necessary] to photograph all evidentiary items prior to them being moved for collection and preservation.
The St. Kitts scenario
Very often when a homicide occurs in St. Kitts soldiers are seen among the first responders and, just like some junior police officers, their approach to civilians present at the crime scene leaves much to be desired.
The soldiers are sometimes tasked with assisting the police in erecting crime scene tapes and/or barriers around the perimeter in order to secure the area during investigation. The soldiers, like junior police officers, are also charged with ensuring that no unauthorised person breaches the established ‘no crossing zones’, while at the same time combing the outskirts of the crime scene in search of likely suspects.
These methods are all in keeping with the SOP, but 99 percent of the times when first responders arrive at the crime scene they exhibit arrogance, incompetence and, most importantly, a high degree of unprofessionalism.
Crime solving is not only dependent on esoteric knowledge, but also a number of factors outside of a classroom.
A competent investigator must possess sound judgment…knowledge of the area and behaviour of the people within which the crime was committed; the application of experience; an analytical mind, which will enable him to distinguish the usual from the unusual; ability to effectively communicate at all levels; and gain the trust of civilians.
However, when first responders arrive at a crime scene in St. Kitts, most of them would approach bystanders in a brusque and sometimes overbearing manner, often physically remove them from the area, and at times intimidate them with the threat of gun-butting or arrest.
This type of behaviour impedes the information gathering process which can greatly assist in the solving of crimes; for among the bystanders may be witnesses as well as relatives and close affiliates of the victim.
On the other hand, there are individuals whose behaviour forces security officers to employ drastic measures in order to restrain them from encroaching on the crime scene.
Commenting on the behaviour of both security officers and bystanders at crime scenes, an Inspector said, “All members of the police force, during their basic training, were taught the rudiments of crime scene protection but not all of them will employ what they were taught. However, not all officers are crime scene investigators…this field of work calls for special training.”
The Inspector also said that the mentality of most five-year-olds is above that of some adults found at crime scenes, noting that “one does not have to speak twice in letting a five-year-old know that he is doing something wrong. But some adults, you have to repeat yourself over and over before they could understand that a crime scene could be contaminated if they encroach on it”.
This media house had observed an almost comical scene in Lower Cayon during the shooting-death of 29-year-old Karando ‘Kasper’ Otto and the wounding of Deshawn Williams (27) and Patnell Isaac (24) on the night of Sunday, August 14, 2011.
Investigating officers were seen using the light of their cellular phones in search of evidence at that crime scene, which indicated that the force is either not equipped with flashlights or the investigators do not walk prepared to conduct investigations under poor light.
Another unprofessional incident occurred some four years ago at Camp Springfield when a young man’s vehicle was being searched. One officer found a dagger in the vehicle and passed it to a female colleague who was recording the finds. Surprisingly, without a glove, she collected the dagger and placed it under her armpit.
Recommendations
• When soldiers are required to assist the police in protecting a crime scene, they must be properly briefed on how they should speak to and treat members of the media and also civilians. Aggression must only be exercised in extreme cases. This also goes for some members of the Police Force;
• Officers must be courteous towards onlookers at a crime scene but yet firm in the dispensation of their duties;
• There are times when an investigation is perceived to be completed after two hours, but residents of that particular area are not allowed to get to their homes until the body is removed by a funeral home, in the case of a shooting-death. It is suggested that the most senior officer on the ground communicate with the residents in letting them know what the situation is and subsequently make the necessary arrangement for them to be guided through the crime scene. This will certainly eradicate the tension amongst the residents as was witnessed on August 14, 2011 in Upper Cayon;
• Individuals react differently to situations, especially when a loved one is lost to violence. Officers must be able to recognise the bereaved and offer condolences in a professional manner which will eventually allow them to gain vital information;
• Because of the public’s distrust, officers must be capable of gleaning information from witnesses at a crime scene in a confidential nature in order to alleviate the fear of reprisals, because there is no secured witness protection system in the Federation;
• In addition to the presence of a particular jurisdiction’s most senior officer (Station Sergeant) and investigating officers at a crime scene, the Divisional Commander and the Public Relations Officer (PRO) should also be there;
• Information from investigators to media practitioners sometimes takes hours at a crime scene. Therefore, after certain areas within a crime scene have been declared cleared, the PRO should take members of the media beyond the tape and brief them in a timely manner to avoid dissemination of unconfirmed information; and
• There are many intelligent officers in the force. Some of them were trained in specific disciplines and can be termed specialists. However, for one reason or the other, they have been placed in departments where their skills are under utilised. It is therefore suggested that the High Command pursue a restructuring exercise to improve on the force’s low solvability rate.
The solving of a crime begins at the scene. It is the location where an illegal act takes place in which most of the physical evidence is found by trained investigators. It must be secured in order to avoid contamination, and those tasked with its security must only use physical force when absolutely necessary.
There have been 27 homicides to date, equalling that for the entire year of 2009, and almost all of them are still under investigation. The police alone cannot solve these crimes and they have been calling on the public to assist them. But will the public provide the evidence when some crime scene responders behave in an arrogant manner? Will they provide evidence when there is distrust?
Law enforcement officers must make the public feel that they are not only their protectors, but also their friends. People love to know that they are appreciated. They like to feel important, and this can be achieved by the first responders.
For example, when first responders arrive at a crime scene, they can sometimes involve a few members of the public to assist in erecting the tapes and or barriers. This will most certainly make them feel that they are doing something worthy by assisting the police.
