Identities of no-show police revealed to non-profit, High Tide Project

A non-profit outfit incorporated in TT and operating in the region has embarked on a mission to hold public institutions to account while advocating for improved delivery of services. They are starting with the police service.

As part of its Police Transparency Initiative, the group – the High Tide Project has asked for, and received from the police service, the identities of some police officers whose non-appearance in court have led to the dismissal of cases.

In a statement, High Tide Project executive director attorney Lee Merry said the group was waiting on a complete list for cases dismissed because the police either failed to appear in court or were not ready, in the last five years.

It has provided the names of the offending officers which they have received so far.

Merry said they have also asked for information on if any of the officers have been disciplined, but noted that the provision of this information was postponed since information forms part of the officers’ employment history, so they would need to be informed of their right of challenge.

Merry said although the information provided to the High Tide Project was incomplete, it was still a “significant step in the right direction, since it is the first time that individual officers in charge of these dismissed cases have been specifically identified.

“Making public bodies accountable through greater transparency is the only way to achieve improvement in the delivery of services,” he said.

The information shows roughly one third (or 38 per cent) of the dismissed cases were for firearms-related offences, in addition to other serious offences such as trafficking cocaine, shooting with intent and attempted murder.

The information covered 17 police sections, units or divisions, naming the police officers, in cases from 2016-2021. A redacted copy of the information was provided to the media.

The information also showed that the North Eastern Division and Western Division had the highest number of dismissed cases (59 each), with several “repeat offenders” – police officers who were the complainants in cases which were dismissed for want of prosecution or lack of readiness.

The High Tide Project said, to date, the police have disclosed information on 254 dismissed cases, but Merry said, “This is just the tip of the iceberg.”

The media statement pointed to a release issued by the police service on October 26, which acknowledged 1,843 cases were dismissed for non-appearance in 2019 alone.

In February, Commissioner Gary Griffith said when he took office in 2018, one of the things he noticed was the number of policemen who failed to attend court for one reason or the other.

Griffith said he has since put specific policies in place to mitigate the problem.

“And, I am pleased to say there has been an 80 per cent overall improvement in police officers attending court, with some divisions recording an over 90 per cent improvement.”