RickBlaine
6/23/2016 13:00 EST
This morning was my first time attempting to get police help and I'm sadly disappointed! At 4am the neighbor(s) downstairs were involved in some type of domestic dispute, a man and 2 women. Called Mt Salem & Freeport stations and no answer. repeated calls to 119 and no response from the police. About 6am one woman set a bed on fire just below us, another neighbor and I had to put it out. Again, repeated calls to 119, Mt Salem & Freeport... and NO RESPONSE!! Finally at about 8:30am placed a call to Commissioner Williams' office and officers responded about 30 minutes later. While thankfully no one was injured the argument kept escalating. The one woman left before the police showed up.
I PAY A LOT OF FRIGGIN GCT & TAXES... I DON'T EXPECT THIS POOR OF SERVICE FROM PUBLIC SAFETY.
I'm waiting for a call back from Commissioner Williams... doubtful he'll pick-up the phone and call me!!! So much for safety!!!!
I'm now going to FLA (Jamaica Firearm Licensing Authority) and getting my permit/license. If I would of had a gun it would have been over by 4:30am!!!
I WILL NEVER DEPEND ON nor EXPECT a response from JCF in the future. I WILL PROTECT MYSELF and MY FAMILY!!!!
SAD, because I have much respect for law enforcement every where!!!
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royal
6/23/2016 13:32 EST
Please be careful, you may become a target when individuals know you have a gun and might try to steal it by any means necessary.
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Gardis
6/23/2016 15:41 EST
Rick, I haven't lived in Jamaica since the early 2000's but I am amazed that you are surprised by this turn of events. You have lived there a long time, certainly you are aware of the reputation (bad) of the police forces. Let's not even go into it. The other poster gave you very, very good advice about the firearm. I can only see it being used for protection. Do not ever let anyone see you with that gun. For sure, it will attract the wrong kind of attention in Jamaica. Royal gave you very good advice.
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RickBlaine
6/23/2016 17:28 EST
NO!!! I'm not surprised... I'm F&$%ing pissed!!!!
First; while the other poster may have provided "good advice" for some, I'm not typical or in need of advice.
Second; if I pull a gun out, I'm using it!!! You can take that to the bank.
I may be white but I grew up on the streets of Detroit and spent a lot of time on the south side of Chicago... not to mention the barros & hood of East LA.
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Cessj
6/23/2016 21:25 EST
RickBlaine, sorry for everyone involved, but this is the reality that most Jamaicans live with - poor public services, including from those who are meant to serve and protect...it's not just a JA thing...a few years ago, husband and myself were on a deserted beach in Bdos when we were approached by a guy with serious mental health issues who clearly wanted to off my husband and rape or do worse with me...luckily for us, another man appeared and helped my husband to beat him off...we went to the local police station to report it, and ...they just shrugged their shoulders...didn't even bother to take a report...while I have never had - as yet - any concerns about my safety here in JA, I am not at all convinced that I could rely on the JCF to respond in a crisis - i live here alone, though in a gated (but not entirely secure) community, and so i do have moments when I worry about security and safety and what would happen if I got into a bad situation but on the whole, I try not to think about it...there was a situation last year when my neighbours were having some really bad domestic issues and on one occasion it got so bad that i had to call the police..fortunately, they did respond (I live in UWI housing on a UWI staff compound) fairly quickly and did intervene even though the couple concerned had calmed down by the time they arrived and presented a united front denying that anything had happened...however, the police were aware of the history of violence and came back to see me later to fill me in, and also to warn me that one of the males involved had a long record of violence, and that I should be careful in case they got pissed with me for reporting them, and they actually gave me the personal mobile number of a police officer to contact...one of the senior officers also came to see me to check that I was OK...now, the caveat...as I said, I live on a UWI compound and it was UWI Campus police who responded..also they were aware that I work in a particular institute that had actually trained police and security on handling domestic and gender violence...and of course - and this is a bit weird, they were somewhat enthralled by my Brit accent (I get that a lot here)...
Anyway, I think what I really want to say is that when we make a choice to live here, we have to accept that certain things are not going to be the way that we are used to...the po-lice aren't going to coming with sirens blazing to a domestic or indeed to many other violent situations...
This doesn't mean that we have to accept it..what we CAN do is to support those civil society organisations that are striving for change, striving to make the necessary changes...there are several organisations that work with victims of domestic violence, for instance, and they work with the po-lice and other public services to try to change attitudes, policies and practices...
I know you're angry but the gung-ho Marine mentality can potentially create more problems for you..you should know that the gunmen are ruthless, and yes, they will shoot you down in the blink of an eye - prise your weapon from your dead fingers, and likely use it against your family...
I get that your'e angry, but as I say, your experience is an everyday one for a lot of Jamaicans and when we come to live here, we throw in our lot with ordinary Jamaicans in the knowledge that we won't receive special treatment...
If you're going to tool up, then best keep quiet about it, because as another poster said, you could just make yourself a target...and think of the repercussions for your family...
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luvvinlife
From: Jamaica
6/24/2016 14:28 EST
I was told, as a single woman there, to never yell help, if someone broke in, or I was afraid, as no one would do a thing, but to yell FIRE!
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LoriB
6/27/2016 18:56 EST
Rick, there is nothing useful you could have done with a gun in that situation, and would have a lot to answer for if you had. You may want to acquire a fire extinguisher, it can be utilized a couple different ways.
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