ATTORNEY-at-law Hugh Wildman says that National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang’s “reckless” utterance encouraging police officers to shoot to kill when under attack by gunmen is unfortunate, as those same officers can be charged with murder and often have difficulty getting funding for legal representation from the State.

“He [Minister Chang] is telling the police to do this, and when they are charged with murder they can’t get the money from the State to pay for their defence. I am representing two policemen like that right now — they were under attack, right there in Barbican…They are suspended right now,” he said during an interview with the Jamaica Observer on Friday.

Wildman was responding to Dr Chang’s recent comment in which he also said he was not in agreement with spending millions of dollars to save the life of criminals who get injured during confrontations with the police.

Wildman said the police are lawfully entitled to defend themselves if they are under attack but the minister saying they must shoot to kill could give the wrong impression because the police can be found to have used excessive force and may not be protected under law.

“While we understand the reason why the minister said that, he has to be more careful…because you may be under attack and let us say your response is out of proportion to the attack, then you could be liable for murder because excessive force destroys self-defence,” he explained, noting that when police are charged for murder they cannot get money from the Jamaica Police Federation or the Government to pay for the defence.

He added: “Let us say the gunmen attacked them and they were able to neutralise the attack, the comment could give the impression that even though they have neutralised the attack, they are entitled to kill the person — which would not be justified in law because you can be under attack, enuh, you neutralise the attack, [then] you can now go and overreact and commit a crime.”

Voicing its disapproval of the minister’s stance, the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM), in a statement issued on Friday, stressed that a “shoot to kill” policy should not be the State’s response to crime reduction and that all public officials are to be guided by the Constitution of Jamaica in their statements and actions.

“Law enforcement officials should not be provided with the assertion or insinuation that there is any provision to act with impunity,” INDECOM said.

INDECOM further asserted that all citizens are subject to the same laws of Jamaica and that in any confrontation the law gives primacy to the right to life, which is an inalienable constitutional right.

Meanwhile, human rights group Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) also issued a release expressing alarm over Dr Chang’s “unfortunate inciteful rhetoric”, noting that the comment “may very well be interpreted as a tacit approval of extrajudicial killings, as well as seemingly suggesting that injured individuals should perhaps be left to die”.

“While JFJ stands with members of the security forces defending themselves, it is to be done in keeping with documented local and international use of force and firearms policies, as well as codes of conduct for law enforcement officials which guide the professional and ethical behaviour of the police. The organisation also cautions that claims of evading of arrest, suspicion of crime cannot justify the use of lethal force,” the statement read.

The JFJ said that such instruction to the security forces as a means for cracking down on crime is not only irresponsible but a clear violation of the right to life and security, as it could lead to further killings in the country while still not moving the country closer to addressing the high crime rate. It said this urging from the minister that a de facto shoot-to-kill policy is encouraged should be rejected by all Jamaicans.