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THE SHOOTING OF THE TEENAGER

May 10, 2014 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

The media has to be more professional. They listened to the version of a young teenager who claimed that a police rank placed a gun into his mouth and played Russian roulette. They took that as the conclusive truth.
The media must be more circumspect. They can report what was being alleged, but without corroboration they should not be carrying headlines and writing stories that accept this version as factual; at least not as yet.
It may well turn out to be factual but until it does it is but a mere version of what the injured youth said happened. The media are yet to hear the other sides of this story. They are yet to interview the rank alleged to have been involved in the shooting of the young teenager. They have not yet spoken to any of the other ranks who were part of the arrest of the young teenager.
While they may choose to believe what the teenager has said, they cannot be irresponsibly baring headlines to the effect that Russian roulette was at play. At this stage, this is a mere allegation which if treated as gospel within the media can prejudice the case against the police rank if and when he is eventually charged.
The facts so far are as follows: a young teenager was shot resulting in injuries to the mouth. The ballistic tests, according to the police, revealed that the bullet was fired from a police weapon. The youth has been discharged and the police had held a suspect who is a member of the Guyana Police Force.
Based on the circumstantial evidence alluded to above, it is reasonable to assume that the youth was shot by a police rank. Since he was arrested by more than one rank it is hard to imagine that they could not subdue him and safely take him into custody.
Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that somewhere along the line he was shot. He has given his version of what took place but the other ranks have not. And the media has not provided any corroboration of the young man’s version.
Persons are pressing for a suspect to be charged.  There was a protest outside of the Office of the Commissioner of Police. Yesterday, the Kaieteur News’s front page carried a photograph of the injured teen protesting outside the Commissioner’s Office, on a school day. No one has yet asked why after such a traumatic experience, and so soon after being discharged from hospital, he is out in the elements protesting when he should either be in school or at home recuperating.
The protests probably spring from the fear that the police may attempt to cover up the case. But if those pressing for justice do not allow the investigating authorities sufficient time to assemble a proper case, when the matter appears before a magistrate it may not be as strong as it ought to be and could be dismissed. Then there will be an uproar that the investigators did not do a proper job.
The police must be given adequate time to prepare their case. Unlike the media, the prosecuting authorities cannot simply run with the version provided by the young man. They have to listen to the other parties to this incident and try to make a determination as to what happened.
Then they have to decide what charges are justified and to obtain the necessary statements to back that case up.
Since this is a matter involving an office of the law, the case file has to be sent to the Police Complaints Authority and later to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
All of these things are going to take time and therefore patience must be exercised because to do otherwise would be to run the risk of a hastily done investigation which may not stand up in court.
The police must be allowed time to conduct their investigations. Forcing the police to rush their investigations may be counterproductive towards the ultimate goal of justice for the injured teenager.

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