DEPUTY Commander of the police ‘D’ Division (WBD,WCD,EBE) Stephen Mansell, who is also performing the duties of Divisional Commander, on Saturday addressed stakeholders of the division on the issue of domestic violence.

He was at the time addressing the gathering during a domestic violence workshop which was attended by detectives, court orderlies and general duty police officers. The event was held at Met en Meer Zorg, West Coast Demerara.
The gathering also included persons from the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security; The Force Chaplin; members of the religious community and other persons who have been working with the police in the division on various projects and initiatives.
Mansell, who delivered the main address at the event, spoke of the guiding principles and standard operating procedures (SOPs) which the police are expected to follow when conducting investigations, making arrests, laying charges and making arguments for the denial of bail to those who commit such acts.
The senior officer pointed to the importance of the special, designated rooms at police stations to deal with persons who come to make domestic violence reports, including men. On that note, he said that no male should be afraid to report their cases of domestic violence and assured participants that the laws governing the offence is not restricted to gender and as such the same penalties apply to anyone who commits the act.
He also spoke of the importance of ensuring that confidentiality is maintained when dealing with victims of domestic violence and to breach that confidentiality could put investigating officers at a disadvantage.
It was also noted during Mansell’s presentation that reporters have to be properly investigated and cases properly made out, to avoid being unfair either to the victim or the suspect. The police have the right and obligation to be balanced in their recording of the facts and the manner in which they deal with such cases.
On the issue of court appearances, Mansell said that the police would apply to the court to have the victims protected from the abuser and this is done by way of the prosecution and/or social workers making representation for either incarceration of the accused or that he or she be put under a restraining order with respect to how many feet he or she could get to the victim.
According to Mansell, these measures are however taken with consideration given to the seriousness of the offence and the report made by the victim. In addition, in cases where the reports are made on weekends and the victim expresses fear for his or her life, the police can move to seek legal representation and/or court intervention through a judge to have the victim placed into protective custody and/or care.
Mansell described domestic violence as not only physical but verbal; sexual deprivation; and deprivation of basic rights and needs as among some of the cases that all fall under domestic violence.
Meanwhile, the other facilitators addressed the causes of domestic violence; how this can be brought under control with a reduction in the practice; and the role of humans in respecting each other which diminishes the likelihood of such acts occurring.

(By Leroy Smith)