Griffith to parliamentarians: We want no bail for gun possession

Police Commissioner Gary Griffith is again making a public appeal for parliamentarians to bring back repealed legislation to deny bail to those charged with gun possession.

In a media release on Wednesday, Griffith said the Bail Amendment Act of 2014, which was in effect for two years, worked in keeping gun-accused people at bay. Section nine of the act denied bail to anyone charged with gun possession for up to 120 days unless otherwise mandated by a High Court judge.

Griffith stated that in Barbados, anyone held with any illegal gun is denied bail for up to 24 months. He called on politicians to revisit the Bail Act and address the issue of granting bail to gun offenders. In September last year, then acting national security minister Fitzgerald Hinds said the proposed amendments to the act will include denial of bail for 120 days for first-time accused charged with having automatic weapons, hand grenades, missiles and weapons for spraying noxious substances. Repeat offenders will face tougher penalties. This was supported by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi's repeated claims that the amendments will be brought to Parliament with the hopes that the Opposition will support the changes.

Griffith pointed out that in the past nine years, there were 1,457 repeat firearm offenders. He said 323 persons were arrested for firearm offences over the last three years and were given bail at their first court appearance, “with hundreds getting bail subsequently.”

Last year, Griffith trained his proverbial guns at magistrate Aden Stroude who granted bail to a man charged with possession of firearm components that could, if put together, be assembled into nine AR15 assault rifles, minus a few parts.

In his release, Griffith also took another jab at the judiciary for their handling of gun-related matters. He called for judicial officers “to deal with firearm offenders in a more serious way.” This came after a Valencia man was fined $16,000 by a Sangre Grande magistrate last week, after pleading guilty to charges of possession of a firearm and ammunition. The man was allowed 90 days to pay or in default face two years hard labour.

Griffith said: “What the accused got was a pat on the back and a free pass, knowing there are no consequences for his actions. A person who issues a bounced cheque can be fined up to ten times the amount of the cheque and can also be sent to prison for five years. But someone who was caught with a gun which can kill, is back out the very same day.”

He added: “We did our job, we conducted our intelligence, we arrested and charged and the accused person was given red carpet treatment and immunity to go back onto the streets.”

“This means that someone was held by the police every three days for firearm offences. It was just easy for them to get bail, go back and continue their trade of killing persons, and when those released go out and commit more homicides, some would blame the police.”

“The TTPS has done its job through proper intelligence and operations over the years, by arresting and charging these persons, simply for the said “shooters” to go back onto the streets within 24 hours to continue their trade of killing.”