Law Association wants enhanced security for legal officers

THE Law Association (LATT) is calling for increased security measures for prosecutors and judicial officers in the criminal justice system.

The association made the call in response to the brazen murder of special prosecutor attorney Randall Hector.

He was murdered on December 31, the day after a state of emergency was declared in response to escalating gang-related violence.

Hector, 43, was fatally shot after leaving the Stanmore Avenue Seventh-Day Adventist Church in Port of Spain, where he had earlier delivered a sermon.

Police said while he was walking to his car at the intersection of Stanmore Avenue and Albion Street, two vehicles – a black SUV and a B15 sedan – approached and multiple gunshots were heard.

Hector was shot in the chest. A church deacon took him to the Port of Spain General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

In its statement, the association said, “Mr Hector’s brutal murder was perpetrated one day after the declaration of a state of emergency.

"The LATT is of the view that given the role that Mr Hector played in the administration of criminal justice in Trinidad and Tobago, there is an urgent need for the implementation of security measures for all prosecutors and judicial officers in the criminal justice system.

“The objectives of the state of emergency cannot be realised without the fearless efforts of the legal and judicial officers who are engaged in the criminal prosecution of violent offenders.”

The LATT expressed deep concern over the pervasive violent crime plaguing the country, noting that 2024 saw a record-high murder toll.

“The alarming level of violent crime in TT, to which our citizens have been subjected for many years now, is cause for very serious concern. The murder toll reached an all-time high in 2024.

“Indeed, it was the threat of a further escalation in gang-related violence that forced the Executive to declare a state of emergency.”

In its statement, the LATT urged law enforcement to act swiftly to bring Hector’s killers to justice, underscoring the importance of safeguarding legal and judicial officers to ensure the effective administration of justice.

LATT strongly condemned the murder, describing it as a grave loss to the legal profession and the nation.

Hector was remembered as a “well-respected member of the legal profession and the national community.”

He was admitted to practise in 2006 and served as a prosecutor in the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. He also worked at the Office of the Attorney General and was once the legal director of the intelligence agency the Strategic Services Agency (SSA).