By Roy Sanford, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU
THE ISSUE of the St. James police detaining suspects for periods exceeding the legal limited prescribed by law is expected to be high on the agenda this afternoon when the parish's commanding officer, Superintendent Newton Amos, addresses the Annual General Meeting of the St. James Lay Magistrates Association.
"We are expecting clarifications on the issue of the arbitrary arrest of young men and holding them for a long time without any charges," said the association's president Derrick Harvey, in an interview with The Gleaner on Tuesday. "Although we want to show the police that we support them and we want to co-operate with them, we have a right as citizens to question their work."
Within recent months, the police have earned the wrath of several lawyers and the Senior Resident Magistrate for the parish, Paulette Williams, after it became public knowledge that a number of young men, especially from inner-city communities, were being held for weeks without any charges being laid against them.
Following a recent incident, in which 24-year-old Garfield Sawyers, who was in custody for three weeks, was released without being charged following the intervention of Judge Williams, the Cornwall Bar Association issued a statement condemning the illegal detention and requesting a meeting with Superintendent Amos and his crime chief, Superintendent Derrick 'Cowboy' Knight.
While the detention policy is expected to generate much interest, Mr. Harvey made it clear that that issue is not going to be the only matter he expects Superintendent Amos to address. According to him, he wants the senior policeman to explain his crime fighting strategies, its effectiveness and what is being achieved.
"Crime is on the front page every day," said Mr. Harvey. "He (Superintendent Amos) is a new man and a much talked about policeman. We want to tell him that we are expecting great things from him here in Montego Bay."
