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  • 2 years ago

The head of the Police Complaints Authority, David West, has expressed concern over the rising number of complaints lodged against the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service in 2024. Highlighting the trend, Mr. West suggested that police officers should bear the cost of their own legal defence in certain cases brought against them.

He argued that this measure could significantly enhance accountability within the force. By having officers personally responsible for their legal expenses in particular scenarios, it may encourage better decision-making and adherence to professional standards. This proposal is likely to spark debates about balancing accountability with the support officers need in performing their duties.
Transcript
00:00This is where the officer goes out of his way and maliciously inflicts harm on a citizen.
00:09And then the citizen takes action against him and then the court awards damages.
00:14The police complains authorities in full agreement with the view that officers should pay their
00:19own way when found guilty by the court when grievous acts are committed.
00:24So much so, the PCA is hoping to convince the government of this via a policy document.
00:30Justice Judith Jones of Appeal, as she had already, did an extensive judgment listing
00:38all the cases that came before her and other judges where the same feeling was had where
00:45the crime or the action against the defendant was so egregious that they should pay for
00:54their own pockets.
00:55Now this is a view that is shared by the PCA and this is a view that the PCA will be taking
01:00next year.
01:01And we will be going with a policy document to hopefully the Attorney General and we want
01:06to show him that there is merit in having this course of action take place.
01:12With respect to recent matters where officers were charged with misbehaviour in public office,
01:17the PCA had expressed disappointment over the collapsed case.
01:22The officers that were dismissed, the seven that were dismissed earlier on in November,
01:30I think that could have been prevented if the court process was on top of it and knew
01:35the dates, the adjourned dates, the matter was adjourned to and what they had to do between
01:42the adjourned dates to produce the remaster at the next hearing.
01:46I think that has to be tightened up a lot.
01:48Looking towards the future, the PCA Director is hoping that one issue can be addressed
01:53with urgency.
01:54We find a lot of times when officers retire or resign, there's no proper handover of documents.
02:02And that is so crucial, Marlon, because then it lapses for over a year when it stays on
02:08someone's desk and it's not handover properly and then we're trying to follow up, they can't
02:13find it, they're supposed to return it to the senior superintendent and they don't do
02:17it.
02:18It causes a whole set of problems.
02:20Akshaya Galstan, TV6 News.
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