Gareth Manning and Petrina Francis, Gleaner Reporters

Human rights lobbyists are again chiding the police for their brutal use of force against civilians.

According to lobby group, Jamaicans For Justice (JFJ), up to November 30, some 207 people had been killed by the police, propelling Jamaica to the top of the list of countries with the most extrajudicial killings per capita. This is despite the police's announcement of an overall 20 per cent decline in murder, on the island so far this year.

Executive director of JFJ, Dr. Carolyn Gomes, said last year, Jamaica was ranked third in the world, with 202 civilian killings by the Constabulary Force. She noted that this was also the highest number of killings by the police since 1983.

18 killed per month

An average of 18 people are being killed by the police each month, the organisation said.

"I am appalled. This is setting a new record," Dr. Gomes told The Gleaner.

"I am distressed that the BSI (Bureau of Special Investigations) has not been given the resources (necessary to carry out its duties)," the executive director said.

She said its meagre complement of 14 investigators has not improved since last year and they are not enough to deal with the staggering 207 cases this year.

"This is islandwide and they are not capable of doing this," she pointed out, noting that the lack of resources has been ongoing for several years.

The lobbyists have also criticised the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) for its inability to implement stricter sanctions for repeat offenders and improve methods to preserve crime scenes.

Flaw in investigation

In its most recent report, human rights body Amnesty International criticised the process of investigations, alleging that police officers often failed to preserve crime scenes, and statements from officers were usually taken only after long delays.

It added that several policemen charged with unlawful killings had fled from justice, including the policeman charged with the murder of 10-year-old Renée Lyons in 2003. Up to 17 policemen cannot be found.

Since its inception in 1999, the BSI has been operating with scarce resources which has made the work of this internal investigative team difficult.

Speaking with The Sunday Gleaner earlier this year, acting Commissioner of Police, Granville Gause, said the team received as many as 40 cases per month to investigate.

The bureau, he also admitted, has faced repeated obstacles in gathering strong evidence against bad cops, due to poor methods of collection and poor record keeping, causing only about 55 per cent of cases to be cleared up over the last eight years.