‘Policing’ is defined as the maintenance of law and order by a police force (service?). Is Bermuda being policed?
- MURDER – increased incidence of murder – and staggering number of unsolved cases … let us not forget the Ms Middleton fiasco.
- EVIDENCE – BPS seemingly having difficulty with evidence … A judge finding, with regard to 3 accused of murder – ‘I concluded that there is no evidence on which you can find beyond a reasonable doubt …’ (30/05/2024 – murder trial)
- 05/2024 – DNA evidence also appears problematic as highlighted by a miscarriage of justice. Julian Washington will not be retried for a 2018 murder – an independent review of DNA evidence has been suggested – read more here.
- FIREARMS – regular firearms incidents – yet reward derisory? Residents are rightly concerned – read more here.
- STABBINGS – knife crime issues – 2024: ‘police have seen 16 incidents of knife crimes this year and that the island could surpass last year’s record of 25 should the trend continue’ (source)
- COLLISIONS – high number of vehicle collisions & road fatalities – 07/2024 – ‘Collisions remain common despite police crackdown‘. The island is ranked 10th in the top 10 world countries for reported accidents per population – read more here.
- CYCLE RENTAL – the potential damagers associated with cycle hire – read more here.
- NO-GO AREAS – no-go areas and drug dealing
- SEARCH WARRANTS – the obtaining & use of search warrants
- the BPS decline to disclose Detective Chief Inspector Arthur Glasford’s internal report about a search warrant – read more here
- POLICE CORRUPTION – the number of BPS officers under investigation – 2021 report ‘Almost half of Bermuda’s police officers have been investigated for alleged wrongdoing in the past three years‘. In 2020, Police disciplinary decisions were to be reviewed because a UK officer in charge of professional standards is not a BPS member – read more here.
- 06/2024 – such is the problem, a dedicated “anti-corruption” department is being set up by the Bermuda Police Service – read more here
- OPPRESIVE CONDUCT – alleged officer intimidation – Charges dropped against police sergeant and wife (04/07/2024)
- 2021 former Chief of Police, Mr Corbishley’s ‘shock resignation‘ occurred while he was under investigation for alleged gross misconduct toward a subordinate officer
- POLICE NUMBERS – the size of a constabulary for just 65,000 occupants – currently between 450 and 500 sworn officers. This range reflects the total number of active officers employed to police Bermuda’s 21 square miles and serve its population of approximately 62,000 residents (source)
- LACK OF ONVESTIGATION – the 1993 dismissal of the ” the largest and most serious case involving conspiracy, drug trafficking and money laundering ever conducted by the Bermuda Police force” – arguably undermining the rule of law, paving the way for the subsequent crimes … murder, drug, gang firearm & knife crime – above.
- OFFSHORE INVESTMENTS – The Paradise Papers & Bermuda names linked – did anyone bother to investigate the evidence/information
11/2017: ‘Ber-Murder’; the island’s 5th murder of 2017 (the 3rd shooting) sees the island moving up the world ranking of murder rates. With a population of 61,245, the murder rate is a little over 1 in every 100,000 – more than most of the States in the USA.
12/2015: Commission of Inquiry to investigate the findings of the Auditor General’s Report on the Consolidated Fund for the Financial Years 2010, 2011 and 2012. It is claimed that there were instances of overspending, expenditures not having the required Cabinet approval, contracts not being tendered, duplicate payments being made and other issues pertaining to tens of millions of dollars.
Wikileaks post: 2010 ‘Bermuda: auditors general call on police to investigate mismanagement of government funds’ – click here
It appears likely the inquiry will consider events such as those reported at:
$485,000,000 missing from the public purse – click here for more information – and the arrest of Bermuda’s Auditor General, Larry Dennis – click here for more information.