KINGSTON, Jamaica – What is the attraction between policemen and bars? Much like the local watering holes in Westerns, the bar is often the mise en scene for acts of macho street theatre as well as a meeting place for locals.

Admittedly, there is a ‘let’s-go-have-a-drink-culture’ that most Jamaicans cultivate as part of their daily activities. And many cops, seeking respite from their stress-filled jobs, congregate at these watering holes, and sometimes, they encounter the local criminal element, sometimes with mixed results. 

“These are trying times as it relates to what is happening in the country, and for policemen themselves. The problem of overwork in the force often brings on stress, and just like any human being, a policeman or woman will find ways to relieve stress,” one cop admitted to Observer Online.

“From time to time, it is published in the Force Orders for officers to be very alert to the dangers which face them where they choose to recreate and spend off-duty hours, but it is part of our culture and why should cops be afraid to go about their lawful business?” the cop added.

Last week, gunmen shot and killed a police corporal, Devon Thomas, while he was having a drink at a popular bar on Golding Avenue in St Andrew. A manhunt has since been launched for the men who are still on the run.

In the wake of Corporal Thomas’ untimely murder, Chairman of the Jamaica Police Federation, Corporal Rohan James, is urging the federation’s members to be vigilant and in a state of high alert.

“I have reminded our members that they don’t have to wait to be maimed or injured before they take action in the protection of their lives,” a resolute-sounding James said.

According to checks by Observer Online, more than a dozen cops have been killed inside bars since 2001.

In the past, police commissioners have urged members of the force to exercise caution when choosing areas of recreation, but sometimes, the warnings are ignored. One policeman was killed in a Newlands bar one week after one such warning in 2002.

While in recent years there has been a decline in the number of police officers killed by criminal elements – only five officers were killed in 2020 compared to what was previously a double-digit norm – members of the public often wonder why policemen continue to visit bars when there is such a huge risk of being targeted by brazen criminals.

But James holds a unique position that clashes with conventional wisdom, and that is that no quarter must be given to criminals, and no ground must be ceded to the criminal elements.

“We cannot relinquish any space or area to the criminal elements in Jamaica. If anything, we should take even more of the spaces. We will not retreat and I urge the rank and file membership to redouble our efforts, to bring these perpetrators to justice. We need to take it to the criminal elements so society can be rid of these mendicants,” James said.

He urged members of the JCF to show courage and “to understand our calling and purpose”.

“If we are cowards, Jamaica will never fulfil her potential as ascribed in our road map, the anthem, the motto, and pledge, if we’re to advance in beauty, fellowship and prosperity, then we cannot allow those who reap mayhem to go unchecked,” he said.

He hailed Corporal Thomas as a “fearless crime fighter evidenced by the nine commendations he received”.

“He was pleasant, sociable and dedicated, his earthly sojourn abruptly cut by criminals. The question continues to be asked: Who will mourn the protectors?” James asked ardently.

In closing, James paraphrased the Irish statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke.

“We can never allow evil to prevail,  and as good men stand and  do nothing,” he said.

INCIDENTS OF COPS KILLED IN BARS

–          Detective Constable Mudselven English was gunned down on February 24, 2001, during a robbery at the Lime Tree Joint bar on Goffe Road, Kingston 11.

–          On February 4, 2002, 20-year-old Constable Oneil Spencer was killed at a bar in Jackson Town.

–          In August 2003, Constable Carlton Ellis, who was stationed at the Hunts Bay Police Station, was shot dead after he attempted to foil a robbery at a bar on Pandora Crescent, Kingston 11.

–          On August 29, 2007, Special Corporal Gareth Smith of Harman Barracks was killed as he sat among a group of persons in a bar in Frazers Content, St Catherine.

–          In April 2015, there was a bizarre case where a policeman, Kemar Beckford of the Negril Police Station, was shot and killed by another police officer in Hopewell, Hanover while he, Beckford, attempted to rob a bar. Beckford was reportedly on sick leave when he and an accomplice attempted to rob a bar in which a senior cop was a patron.

–          In May 2019, Constable Toddmar Allen was shot dead by gunmen in Rollington Town, east Kingston. Assigned to the Mobile Reserve, Constable Allen was among patrons at a bar close to the Rollington Town Police Station in the Kingston 2 area when two men armed with guns approached and opened fire at him.