The sustained high incidence of crime in T&T is slowly changing the mentality of citizens from scared and cautious to retaliatory and violent. This was apparent recently in Barrackpore where one man was killed and another badly beaten. Reports conveyed that villagers sought retribution on two men who allegedly robbed, chopped and beat members of a family at their home. Suffice it to say that some of us have reached our limit, no longer prepared to cower and flee from vile elements that invade our lives, homes and dreams.
For too long crime has been dictating the pace. It forces us to decrease the time we spend out and increase our spending on security-a bigger padlock here, a deadbolt there and reinforced burglar-proofing. People simply cannot live in fear indefinitely and as a result are likely to fight back the best way they can. Unified! The law as espoused by Commissioner of Police Dwayne Gibbs tells us that using excessive force against a perpetrator is wrong and punishable. While this decree is well intentioned it is not always easy for a petrified or enraged individual to find in the moment the logic and will to administer appropriate force upon a transgressor.
And surely a person may not have a clue as to how much force is deemed excessive in a particular situation. Excessive force is clear if a group of people batters a bandit to the point of unconsciousness or death. But what of the case where, in a desperate fit, a woman manages to fatally stab an intruder who was armed with a toy gun? There can be many variables to that circumstance. Additionally, if in an attempt to foil a robbery, I tripped a fleeing robber, who in falling fatally cracks his skull on the pavement, will I be guilty of using excessive force even though my intention was merely to slow him down?
Conversely, if the robber had fallen just long enough for the police to catch him, obtaining only minor bruises, wouldn't I be hailed as a hero? Blatant excessive force on a person caught in a criminal act should be avoided. Being judge, juror and executioner, although tempting in certain cases, sets a bad precedent with the potential to escalate the murder rate. However, recent events in Barrackpore and subsequent pronouncements by the CoP dictate that citizens must be educated in the finer details of excessive force and its repercussions. This will foster more informed decisions relative to how far we are willing to go in attempting to foil a crime or even engage in a citizen's arrest.
Dexter Rigsby
Mt Lambert