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Posted: Monday 12 October, 2015 at 6:19 PM

We must stop being judgmental!

By: Stanford Conway, SKNVibes.com

    BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – JUST days after celebrating his 21st birth anniversary, the mother and other family members of Jason Morton were left to mourn his death. Death at the hands of an unscrupulous masked individual dressed in black clothing, who shot him multiple times, including the head, as he was about to enter the yard of his Heritage Village home in Lower Cayon at about 12:50 p.m. on Thursday (Sept. 17).

     

    According to a police report, “Initial investigations revealed that the assailant(s) left Upper Cayon and journeyed to Hermitage Village to the home of the deceased”, where he had secreted himself in the yard.

    Morton, who was in the company of 17-year-old Anthony Pringle of Shear Lane, Basseterre, was slightly ahead of his companion while proceeding through the gate to his home when a gunman fired a number of shots in their direction.

    Morton died at the scene while Pringle was shot in the shoulder. He reportedly ran in the direction of the basketball court and was taken to the Cayon Police Station from where he was transported by ambulance to the JNF Hospital.

    Police, at that time, had said he was “stable in good prognosis”.

    The Mortons are not the only family in the Federation to have mourned the loss of loved ones at the hands of gunmen during this year. Before Jason there were 21 others - six on Nevis and 15 on St. Kitts - the majority of whom police are yet to apprehend their assailants. 

    Many people had commented on these murders, including the most recent. While some of their comments were sympathetic towards Morton’s family members, others had labelled him and even insinuated that he was a gang member and was also unemployed.

    This media house was however told that the young man was gainfully employed and was on his way home after informing his employer that he was not feeling well, which has led this writer to conclude that too often some people have been judgmental in their comments.

    Passing Judgment

    Apart from the deceased, the perpetrator(s) and maybe the wounded teen, no one really knows the circumstances that led to the deadly shooting incident. If there is anyone with information that can lead to the apprehension and subsequent prosecution of the assailant(s), then the best thing to do as a law-abiding citizen is to inform the authorities. 

    But, on the other hand, there are individuals who are quick to condemn, blame and pass judgment without empirical evidence. They seem to know it all. They profess to know the reason for the killing of some of the young men in St. Kitts and Nevis; they also profess to know that the parents are to be blamed even though they do not live in the same house as the bereaved; and while a number of them were witnesses to some of these murders and other criminal activities, they continue to remain silent.

    Indeed some parents are to be blamed for their children’s actions which may have stemmed from poor parenting skills including lack of proper supervision, but there are many other factors that contribute to gun-related and other serious crimes. Therefore, it is highly improbable to place the blame on one particular factor.

    This article was not written with the intention of providing full details of the various factors that contribute to crime, but to briefly highlight a few of them.

    Some causes of crime

    Among the many factors that contribute to crime are the family, poverty, unemployment, drugs, gangs, peer pressure, the influence of friends and the environment.

    In his writings on the family factor (Understanding Criminal Behaviour), David W. Jones posited: “The rival explanations for the apparent relationship between family and crime can roughly be divided between the ‘sociological’ and the ‘psychological’. The ‘psychological’ explanation is that families are responsible for shaping the mind and personality of the individual.”

    As explained in a blog posted by Jessica pertaining to ‘Contributing Factors to Criminal Behaviour’, “The ‘sociological explanation is the family’s environment. For example, a child can have parents that teach the child to be respectful, honest, and caring, but the child can lack attention from their parents due to sociological factors such as poverty, single parent, and having multiple children.”

    In his comments, the Federation’s Medical Chief-of-Staff, Dr. Cameron Wilkinson, suggested that a multi-pronged approach should be taken, beginning with the home.

     “I always say it is difficult for anyone in my family to hide a book in my house, and I wonder how, for example, persons can hide a gun in a house and no one knows about it. And so we need the effort from the entire family to deal with the problem.”

    He opined that the church and other organisations of society also have a role to play in alleviating the crime problem.

    There is the saying that “people are known by the company they keep”. This is very instructional, in that it is wise to ensure that young people keep the right company and not be influenced by the wrong ones. 

    However, as stated in a Kaieteur News Editorial, this is much easier said than done because some young people do not even find that right company in their homes or good role models within their families. Many of them are left with the choice of turning to friends and acquaintances, good or bad, and this is usually the case when they do not have that loving and caring home or a motivating environment.

    They then look elsewhere for that love, care and motivating environment, which often lead to anti-social behaviour. Some of them would turn to friends for guidance and direction and eventually adopt the same attitudes; for it is known that the influence friends exert over each other is very powerful and far too often undesirable.

    That influence could lead to gang-life; another factor that contributes to crime. This factor is very extensive but, as mentioned before, it will only be briefly dealt with.

    There are many gangs in the Federation. It was suggested that these gangs were formed by what is called “imported behaviours”. They were formed because of what was seen in the US via television and the movies, heard through some Rap music and read in magazines, periodicals and newspapers. 

    In 2010, Sergeant Carl Greaux had identified some of the gangs in the Federation as:
     
    Bloods - This gang is known for its gang members’ use of the colour red in their clothing and hangs out in Newtown with members from Newtown, Conaree, Cayon and also Nevis.
     
    Crips - This gang is known for its gang members’ use of the colour blue in their clothing and hangs out in McKnight. They have now broken up and divided into two groups, the ‘Tek Life’ and the ‘KMS’ (Killer Man Squad). These two groups are in conflict with each other and also engage in open warfare. The Crips is now a loosely connected network of individual sets belongings to the two autonomous gangs. They are mainly from West and Central Basseterre and have members in Newtown and St. Paul’s.
     
    Black Knight - This gang is known for its gang members’ use of the colour black and its membership is from Tabernacle, where they also hangout.
     
    Brown Street - This gang is known for its gang members’ use of the colour brown in their clothing. Members of this gang are from and hang out in Saddlers. 
     
    River Side - This gang is known for its gang members’ use of the colour green in their clothing. Its members are from Old Road and Frigate Bay and they hang out in Old Road. 

    However, some five years later, it was learnt that the Brown Street Gang has become dormant and most influential members of the River Side Gang have migrated, some to Anguilla. It was also learnt that some leaders and their lieutenants of most of these gangs have either died in gang warfare or migrated, or are imprisoned. 

    It is said that many young people did not realise they were in gangs until it was too late to back out. They thought that they were among a group of friends.

    Among the many reasons suggested why young people join gangs are recognition, excitement, making friends, acceptance, a sense of belonging, power over other people, money from criminal activities, protection, domination and respect.

    But what are the consequences?

    According to the Los Angeles Police Department, “Gang membership exacts a terrible toll from the lives of all who contact the member. Parents and relatives of gang members live in a double fear; for their own safety and that of the other non-gang family members and, a fear for the survival of their gang member relative.

    “Non-gang member friends are cast aside and soon the youth’s only friends are gang members.
    Gang membership, although a temporary phase for some youths, will shape the individual’s future. All levels of formal education are discarded because they counter the gangs’ objectives. Gang members not killed or seriously injured often develop patterns of alcohol and narcotics abuse, and extensive police records that will limit their employment opportunities.”

    It is also common knowledge that most gang members are school dropouts and have difficulty finding employment. Therefore, they turn to crime. And should a member of one gang gets into a conflict with a rival gang member or members, “Peter will pay for Paul” and oftentimes “Paul will pay for all”. The result usually ends in death.

    It has been theorised that unemployment tends to propel some people into crime in order for them to survive economically. However, although there is no published statistics in St. Kitts and Nevis to support this theory, it is evident that there was a relatively high rate of unemployment among youths, hence the introduction of the People Employment Programme (PEP).

    In some quarters, it is perceived that a large number of youths on the PEP are gang members and crime would escalate should they be taken off the programme. This perception is however yet to be proven.

    It is believed that unemployment leads to poverty and, according to experts, from sociologists to economists, poverty and crime have a very intimate relationship. Both the United Nations and the World Bank have reportedly ranked crime high on the list of obstacles to a country’s development, and this means that governments which are trying to deal with poverty often have to face the issue of crime as they try to develop their country's economy and its society.

    Experts have contended that most criminals began their illegal profession by committing petty crimes before graduating into major ones; and if measures are not taken early to effectively prevent those acts, they could become a habit and mature to more violent and dangerous acts.

    From this backdrop, the Kaieteur News Editorial posited: “It is alleged that most actions and habits begin with small acts. This is true for both good and bad actions and habits. Habits are formed when one acts in a particular way over and over again. Sometimes people do not even realise that they have a habit and are just so consumed in the practice that it becomes second nature to them. At other times they overlook the little acts, not realising that these can eventually become big ones.”

    As earlier stated, only a few of the factors that contribute to crime would be highlighted, and this is due to the fact of time and space. This writer however promises that a follow-up will be provided in the not too distant future.

    Before closing, this writer would like to remind residents of Cayon that the Police High Command, along with the Officer-in-Charge and ranks of the Cayon Police Station, will be meeting with members of the communities this evening (Oct. 12) from 7:00 p.m. at the Community Centre.

    They will be reviews of their Six-Point Plan to reduce homicides and violent crimes, their current crime fighting efforts, and the results of those efforts, as well as providing answers to questions.

    This therefore means that family members of the late Jason Morton can have the perfect opportunity to seek answers to the progress made in the investigation concerning his shooting-death, since the police had indicated in a press release that “Initial investigations revealed that the assailant(s) left Upper Cayon and journeyed to Hermitage Village to the home of the deceased…”

    Finally, we must stop being judgmental. Being judgmental of others without having empirical evidence for what they have allegedly done is like erecting sturdy brick walls that stop anything good from coming in.
     
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