THERE is little, if any, demonstration of it on the streets, but police officers entering the Jamaica Constabulary and its auxiliary arm all go through two months of training in appropriate ‘use of force’, a module that includes techniques of arrest.

In fact, in three swift moves, a ‘suspect’ was floored, with no harm done, other than the dirt caught on the white blouse, in a demonstration to the Sunday Observer by instructors at the police academy located on the edge of Spanish Town, St Catherine.

The six Island Special Constabulary Force (ISCF) members who attempted to apprehend Margaret Berry had used a less effective technique – batons, fists and pepper spray – resulting in an ugly scene and subsequent condemnation of the police when the photos hit the Daily Observer’s front pages.

“What strikes to the heart of the policy is that use of force must be proportionate to the situation that calls for the use of force,” said assistant commissioner of police Delworth Heath, head of the Jamaica Police Academy.

“It must be legally justifiable, that is, the officer must be able to justify in a court of law what he did and why he did it, and it must be a necessary action.”

The breakdown, he admits, is in refresher training for persons who have been in the police force over an extended period.

On entry to the academy, each police recruit is handed a copy of the JCF Human Rights and Police Use of Force and Firearms Policy, a 33-page manual detailing how much force should be used and when, and how the police should apply force.

During basic training, all police recruits for the Jamaica Constabulary Force and the ISCF undergo eight weeks of intense ‘use of force’ training, covering self-defence, apprehending suspects, and the use of weapons and firearms.

But while officers are taught the letter of the law, much of the judgement of what type of force, how and when to apply it, is left to the discretion of the officer in the situation.

That’s where the trouble begins.

“What we’ve discovered in policing in recent times is that you get very little compliance from lawbreakers. Gone are the days when you see a man and you say ‘follow me to the police station’ and he willingly cooperates. Here people resist you for everything,” said Heath.

What many members of the public don’t understand, Heath said, was that once the police have determined that an arrestable offence has been committed, they are well within their right to arrest.

“It’s true that the police, over time, have failed to deal with minor infractions (and) we now find that these are the things that lead to the breakdown of law,” said the assistant commissioner.

“Now there is the view that the police need to take action – even for misdemeanours – and the police can arrest you if you commit a minor offence.”

If the police, during an arrest, encounter physical resistance, they are authorised to use “an appropriate and ‘graduated response’ to conflict”, which starts with a verbal warning.

“Many people don’t know that to be abusive to the police – both verbally and physically – is an arrestable offence,” said specialist trainer Inspector Lloyd Thomas, pointing to section 30 of the Jamaica Constabulary Force Act, which refers to “abusive and calumnious or threatening language to assault, obstruct or resist” as indictable actions.

But the commission of an offence is not sufficient for the police to justify the use of force.

“The police have absolutely no legal authority to initiate force. Force is really to overcome the force that is presented,” said Senior Superintendent Kingsley Robinson, head commandant at the academy.

“If the police detect an offence, and the offender is to be arrested, and a shouting match starts, the police’s duty and obligation is not to shout back – his objective is to arrest the offender. If the offender resists, he has the responsibility to use the necessary force to bring that suspect under control,” adds Inspector Michael Smith, who is also a specialist trainer at the academy.

Among the ‘necessary force’ tactics taught at the academy is ‘Control and Cover’, where recruits are taught how to apprehend, disarm and search suspects in a way that diminishes the probability of escape or the officer being harmed.

The recruits also learn how to use weapons and restraining devices such as batons, mace, handcuffs and firearms, as well as physical techniques to overpower a threatening suspect.

JCF trainees first go through a 32-week residential training camp, eight weeks of which are devoted to courses in use of force techniques. After graduation, the officers are placed on two-year probation, during which time they work full-time as police officers, do weekly training courses, and sit three exams over the period.

To be confirmed as a member of the JCF, officers must return to the academy and successfully complete a four-week ‘refresher’ course at the end of the two years.

Members of the ISCF, the auxiliary body of the JCF responsible for maintaining public order, do a 20-week course, since the scope of their duties is not as wide as regular police, but which includes the same eight-week ‘use of force’ module.

ISCF members are identified by blue seams on their uniforms, while JCF members wear red seams.

“The ISCF undergo in-service training, but they don’t have that two-year probationary period,” he said, which means they are denied advanced training.

“They have normal development training, but it’s not a structured programme for them,” said SSP Robinson.

But for both ISCF and JCF officers, the reality is that once formal training has been completed, anything else has to be learned on the job, since refresher courses are almost non-existent.

“We must admit that we have not been able to do as much (re-training) as we want,” said Heath.

“It is our view that every member of the force should do timely refresher training . that’s what we are striving for, to ensure that each year, as far as is possible, every officer receives refresher training. But we’re not there as yet.”

campbello@jamaicaobserver.com