According to criminologist and special assistant to the Prime Minister, Dr. Elliston Rahming, the murder rate in The Bahamas are said to be at its lowest level since 1999.
He said in released statistics and information to the public over the weekend that the police play a vital role in increasing the rate of detention in the past two years as well.
“First of all, the police are doing an excellent job in apprehending murder suspects. The message is slowly, but inexorably sinking in that for the crime of murder in The Bahamas, the odds are against the criminal,” he said.
The number of murders committed for the year stands at 16, while between January to May in 1999 there were 18 murders; in 2000 there were 21; 17 in 2001 and 22 in 2002.
The rate of detention to date is at 60 per cent, in 2002 it stood at 73 per cent, it was at 59 per cent in 2001; at 52 per cent in 2000 and 55 per cent in 1999.
He conceded that there were too many murders still occurring, but said that the trend is headed in a downward direction rather than an upward one.
“It is easy to work ourselves into a fit of hysteria because of the nature or location of a given murder or indeed because of the identity of the victim. But facts are stubborn things,” Dr. Rahming said.
The criminologist highlighted that despite all of the efforts the police continue to exert: “Murder is a vexing fact of life, most often triggered by undeterred anger, unbridled greed or unmanaged jealousy.”
In this light he also stated the initiatives that the police had taken with regard to domestic violence and drug trafficking to reduce the murder rate. “We know for example that the police now have in place a specially trained Domestic Violence Response Team; that is an important spoke in the wheel of homicide reduction,” he said.
He also stated that there were indications that the police and the public have moved closer to strengthening their partnership, as the average citizen has accepted that “they are the eyes and ears of the police.”
By Jimenita Swain, The Nassau Guardian
