This newspaper makes no judgement on the guilt or otherwise of the policeman who fired the fatal shot in Granville, St James, on Sunday. However, even as Jamaicans lament the death of Ms Latoya “Buju” Bulgin and her treatment immediately after being hit by a single bullet, consequences beyond legal considerations seem inevitable.

A widely circulated video, caught on closed-circuit television camera showed the woman interacting with police before being shot while sitting behind the wheel of a vehicle. We presume that the lawman fired because he thought he was in danger of being run over by the car which was slowly moving forward.

In the immediate aftermath came the image of Ms Bulgin — not yet pronounced dead — being dragged and bundled into the cargo bed of a marked police pickup which then sped away.

Going back as far as any of us can remember, Jamaicans have heard allegations of police showing total disrespect in handling those dead or alive following alleged violent confrontations. The incident in Granville on Sunday, as captured on camera, appeared to be irrefutable evidence of a shooting victim — a woman — being handled inhumanely as horrified, traumatised residents looked on.

The ensuing public outrage is entirely predictable and justified in our view.

We are at one with the Jamaica Umbrella Group of Churches that, “What the footage appears to show is not merely a procedural failure; it is a desecration. No human being, made in the image of God, should ever be handled in that manner…”

Nor can we argue with the Watchman Church Leaders Alliance as reported by
The Gleaner newspaper that it was difficult not to view the incident as evidence of “impunity at work and this is frightening”.

For sure the incident has added great energy to ongoing demands for the use of body-worn cameras by police personnel. We believe it necessary to reiterate our support of calls from various groups for Prime Minister Andrew Holness to speak clearly on this issue. Such a statement takes on added urgency, given the public stance taken by National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang that body-worn cameras are hindrances rather than practical tools for the police in high-risk operations.

As has been widely reported, Dr Chang’s position was rejected by various interested parties, not least the highly respected former Deputy Commissioner of Police Mark Shields, now a leading security consultant.

Perhaps the most important gain by the Jamaican society in recent times has been the dramatic decline in crime, more especially murders. However, it’s no secret that the extraordinarily sharp rise in police fatal shootings over the same period has been eroding trust in the security forces, especially in socio-economically depressed communities.

In the case of Granville, we hear that there has been high tension between citizenry and police following several police shootings there in recent months. News reports suggest fear and distrust of the police were much to the fore as locals responded to the media on Sunday.

We believe such an environment in Granville and the wider Jamaica, if allowed to thrive, will inevitably undermine the gains made by the security forces.

It’s imperative, in our view, that Dr Holness, his Government, and the leadership of the police force move speedily to repair the situation.