Editorial
Harry Lawrence

Women’s organizations all over Belize were outraged last week after hearing that the Appeals Court had overturned a jury conviction of a police officer convicted of rape.
The officer stationed in Dangriga, was identified by a 13 year old girl being detained by the police. She claimed that the police officer entered the room where she was being held and forced her to have sex with him.
At the trial it was established beyond doubt that the child had been raped, and the jurors by their verdict were in no doubt about who had done the dirty deed. Twenty-four year old police constable Juan Pop was convicted and sentenced to 12 years in jail.
Parents and others are blaming the Court of Appeals for releasing Pop from jail. On what grounds, they ask, knowing that a jury of his peers had convicted him.
It should be noted here that the Court of Appeal did not recommend a re-trial. A new trial would have been ordered if something had gone wrong at the trial.Instead the Court of Appeal ordered Pop’s release from jail because there was something wrong with the evidence, which in it’s opinion, a new trial could not cure.
The police in Belize are well aware of the Rules of Evidence. Every new police recruit has it drilled into him before he is admitted into the Police Force. Policemen know that if a young girl accuses a grown man of rape, the girl must positively identify the man she accuses. She must pick him out during an identification parade and say: “That is the man,” or words to that effect. Even dumb cops must know this!
In Dangriga the police in charge did not carry out due diligence and allowed the case to go to court with this key piece of evidence left out.It has happened before, not only in the infamous case of Bou Nera, accused of shooting and killing a man named Copius, but in other instances where investigating police officers have an interest in the outcome of a  case.
We at this newspaper call it the police secret weapon because they use it with devastating effect to subvert and the course of justice in Belize, and to bring the system into disrepute. They employ this secret weapon and escape detection. People blame the courts, or attribute it to police incompetence. But the true name for this is sabotage, and the people who secretly employ this sabotage are engaging in criminal behaviour.
In November last year a senior police Consultant from Jamaica, Harold Crooks, completed a comprehensive study of what needs to be done to “transform the police and policing to ethically and justly enforce the laws in keeping with public expectations.”
The report recommended that Belize secure the services of two senior police officers - one from Barbados and one from South Africa to help with strategic and tactical operations. There were several other useful and valuable recommendations on how to improve the Police Force in Belize.
These recommendations are relevant and practical. If we follow them we will be able to create a top notch Police Force for Belize.
But will we find the political will and the resources to make the changes necessary?
It has been almost a year since the recommendations were made. They need to be studied and implemented! Reporter

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