The official call by acting Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams on Tuesday for his men to wear their bulletproof vests was just a reiteration for the adherence of safety protocols, public information officer of the Police Service, ASP Joanne Archie, said yesterday during the weekly police press briefing. On Tuesday Williams ordered his divisional heads to ensure their men wear their vests after PC Rodell Phillip was shot in the chest during a shoot-out with Jonathan Ramlogan.
Ramlogan, 17, died in a gun battle while Phillip is warded in a serious condition at the Eric Williams Medical Complex, Mt Hope, having been shot in the chest. The bullet pierced his right lung as it exited his body. Asked about the call made by Williams, Archie said officers were always required to wear protective gear whenever going on the field and the call was just a reminder in light of what happened.
When asked if there was enough bulletproof vests for every officer, Archie was unable to say but an audit, she added, would be conducted to determine if that was the case. She said she would not be able to give a time frame as to when the audit would be completed. Archie added t when recruits became police officers they were issued bulletproof vests and whenever they went missing the officers were held accountable.
Archie said with the reiterated order any officer found in breach would be penalised. She added: “As it stands now once the (acting) Commissioner of Police gives the order and there is a breach, certainly that becomes a breach of discipline and the officers will be dealt with according to what is laid down. “The officer will be served with notice identifying breach then he has 30 days to respond and if found guilty by the tribunal he could be fined some days pay.” .
Archie was unable to say if any action would be taken against Phillip for not wearing his vest, adding that there are “so many things will have to be looked at, including the reasons as to why he was not wearing the vest.”
Concern over vacancies in PCA
When questioned about the non-appointment for the head of both the Police Service Commission and the Police Complaints Authority after their respective heads — Prof Ramesh Deosaran and Gillian Lucky — resigned, Archie said the Police Service was concerned by the vacancies. She added that despite their absence the work of the service continued. She said she could not speak on behalf of Williams but as a police officer she was concerned.
She added: “Certainly the work goes on. As we speak tribunals are being conducted and police officers are being charged for disciplinary matters so the process is continuing. “We have to do what we have to do as a police service and an independent body will do what they have to do but that should not debar members of public from making complaints’ “They can go to any police station and it will be investigated in the same way.”