CoP: Special cells for minors

Acting Police Commissioner Stephen Williams says plans are on stream to outfit all police stations in this country with holding cells for juvenile detainees.

Saying that young offenders should not be housed with adults in holding cells, Williams said special cells for juveniles already were being constructed.

“We, as of this week, received a release of funds so that we could outfit two more stations, Maracas/St Joseph and Gasparillo,” he said on Friday while responding to a question on young offenders at a Joint Select Committee on Human Rights, Equality and Diversity in the Parliament Building, International Waterfront Complex, Port-of-Spain.

“Maracas/St Joseph was already being constructed and we had an immediate opportunity to make an adjustment.”

“We also needed to identify that the Children’s Court will be coming on stream and we focused on there being a court in the southern area, a court in the northern area and we looked at how we could support that. So, we focused on having an adjustment made in the southern area.”

Williams said the detention of juveniles has been a longstanding issue within the Police Service.

“It is not a new thing. Once we are detaining juveniles, we separate them from adults. That is the normal practice.

“What is being brought to bare is a clear distinction of treatment, even the manner in which the cells are to be constructed and outfitted. And that is the context in which we speak today in relation to special cells for juvenile offenders.”

The acting CoP said there were established rules, guidelines and practice in all locations where juveniles are detained.