Ex-crime-fighter Clive “Karate Georgie” Lawrence, who lost a son to crime in 2019, is deeply saddened by the current situation in Jamaica.

The revered officer who retired from the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) in 2013, lamented that he never expected this to be Jamaica’s reality.

In 2019, Lawrence was conferred with the Mayor of Montego Bay’s special award on National Heroes’ Day for his service to St James over several years. He stressed that policing shouldn’t be the sole factor that is criticised amid the rising, worrying crime numbers.

“Guns keep coming into the place and it’s like you can’t convince these youths otherwise. It is really sad. And the community policing only sound fancy to these youths but it nuh effective because these youths are different. The youths are not interested and it boils down to the parenting. Parents have children and dem a do scamming and they see that as the norm. It is rough. Parents contribute. Parents need to be blamed too. A percentage should be blamed on the parents and not only the police,” Lawrence told the Jamaica Observer in a recent interview.

“Trust me, this generation, if you mention even sending them to HEART, they are not interested. Even if you tell them about learning a trade, it come like a insult you a insult them. When a few youths decide that they are going to learn a trade, it is maybe five or 10 out of 1,000. It is sad. This generation is different. And you have to blame the parents. These nowadays parents are not grooming and growing the youths in the right way. It is sad,” Lawrence continued.

Lawrence told the Sunday Observer that seeing crime so rife today is even more painful for him, as he reflects on how the said crime took his 28-year-old son, Shawn Lawrence, from him in November 2019.

Shawn was among a group of friends on Hart Street in Montego Bay on November 2, 2019 when two men armed with handguns shot at them. Four people were hit, and Shawn, who suffered bullet wounds to his groin and abdomen, died after being hospitalised.

“The good thing about it is that he was never in any wrongdoing. He just happened to be going out and celebrating with friends and that happened. The family took it hard. We took it hard and it’s very unfortunate. It was a hard blow for us. We had to just pick up the pieces and move on. I spoke to him many, many times about going to that area, and it went on deaf ears. But, when a man pass 18, yuh cyaa tell him what to do again,” Lawrence said.

“Mi serve for so many years and I was dedicated and loyal to the force, it hurts. Trust me, it hurts. It hurt mi! We have to go for criminals. What is happening now, it is very disappointing. I was never expecting this no time at all. I retired from the force, but I am still passionate about policing.”

Last Sunday, Prime Minister Andrew Holness announced that states of public emergency (SOEs) had been instituted in seven police divisions islandwide as all the divisions have recorded increases in violent crimes.

The SOEs are in effect in St Andrew South, Kingston West, Kingston Central, and Kingston East in the Corporate Area, and St James, Hanover, and Westmoreland.

Up to November 13, 1,250 people had been killed since the start of the year, and Lawrence told the Sunday Observer that he is perturbed by the statistics. He added that criminals are almost unreachable in terms of morale and reasoning.

“Dem youth yah different. You can’t tell them anything about work. All deh pon dem head a scamming. It nuh matter what measures put in place. If wi nuh use fire pon fire with these criminals, it nah guh done. Back in my days, when war turn up in Westmoreland, we had to act fast and quickly intercept when we get any information that criminals are on their way to commit any crime. We had to get to them quickly,” he said.

“The SOEs might really tone it down, but the boy dem with the guns a guh just cool out for a while and when they see the opportunity, as soon as they find a loophole and they know where their enemies are, they are going to go out and shoot them just the same. Dem get tame. They feel like if they see their enemies anywhere they can go and shoot them. They are out there with guns just waiting for the opportunity. And anywhere people are vulnerable, they tend to take set,” Lawrence added.

Even prior to his son’s death, he said he had witnessed first-hand the decay in the society and the rise of criminals.

In 2017, three years after he shelved the police badge, six men stuck him up in the community of Russia in Savanna-la-Mar, Westmoreland, and attempted to rob him.

“They realised I had a firearm and was adamant that if they don’t get the gun, they were going to kill me. They didn’t know it was me because the top of my head was bleached. At one point, the one that was talking to me recognised me,” he recalled.

“A Karate Georgie!” one of the thugs shouted along with an expletive before he and his cronies attempted to run off.

“I managed to fire at him and shoot him. And I came out and fire at one more of the men. Two of dem end up getting shot and were admitted to hospital. I went to the hospital and identified them. They were charged with illegal possession of firearms, shooting with intent, and robbery.”

Then in 2018, while at a car wash in Farm Heights in Montego Bay, he heard a commotion. When he looked up, he saw a man with a gun attacking the car wash operator.

“I sprung out of the car, stick him up, and disarm him. Him go court and plead guilty and get four years. So, even though I left the system, I am still active. I am passionate about crime-fighting. I hate criminals with a passion,” he related.

“Mi call a spade a spade. If I have a family member and they are mixed up in wrongdoing, mi nah go a dem funeral. Yuh deh pon yuh own and mi nuh have no apology fi dat. That is my stance I take on discipline.”