Minister of Information Dana Morris Dixon reported that murders were down 36.6 per cent as of Saturday, April 26.

Dixon emphasised that this is a big reduction, as it means 130 fewer people than last year have lost their lives due to violence. “It means 130 fewer mothers in pain. It is a big number, and it is a big deal, and we need to celebrate it,” she said.

The minister also noted that major crimes are down 18.2 per cent, representing 250 fewer major crimes in the country in the period up to April 26 when compared to last year.

“Those are things to celebrate, and every week that we do post-Cabinet, I’m going to celebrate those numbers because they are worth celebrating and also commend our wonderful members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) who are working so hard to keep us safe and have worked tremendously in bringing these numbers down,” Dixon added.

New penalties for murder

Dixon stated that new penalties for murder were passed in the House of Representatives on Tuesday, April 29, to combat violent crime in Jamaica. “There were amendments made to the Offences Against the Person Act, the Criminal Justice Administration Act, and the Child Care and Protection Act. These amendments represent a vital and deliberate response to the levels of violent crime in our society, particularly those involving the most heinous offence, which is murder.

“In respect of the Offences Against the Person Amendment Bill, for non-capital murder, the mandatory minimum sentence for imprisonment is now 30 years. That’s 30 years for non-capital murder under the Offences Against the Person Act. For capital murder, we have increased the mandatory minimum sentence to be served before being eligible for parole from 20 years to 50 years,” Dixon continued.

The minister expressed that these amendments are the government’s response in saying to criminals that they are really serious about crime. “We are saying that the victims of murder and of crime matter and that the penalties have to be very, very strong. We’ve also seen under that same act, the Offences Against the Person Act, an increase in the mandatory minimum sentence to be served before being eligible for parole, where the sentence is imprisonment for life. We’re moving that from 15 years to 40 years.”

However, where a term of years has been imposed, the period that must be served before becoming eligible for parole is 20 years.

In terms of the Criminal Justice Administration Amendment Bill, it has been amended to increase the term of years to be deemed as life imprisonment from 30 years to 50 years where the offence committed is murder. “The starting point for calculating the reduction in the sentence is usually life imprisonment, and the aim of this amendment is to maintain an incentive scheme for defendants to plead guilty, ensuring that the reduced sentence is not inordinately low so we know that we will still give that credit if you do plead guilty, but the term that is still served needs to be sufficiently long to serve as a disincentive for doing this.

“No one can think that I can commit murder, and I can go and cool off for a bit in jail and then come back out after 15 years or so and commit another murder. We are saying that is no longer the case and we’re very serious about this. We’re very serious about preserving life. We’re very serious about the rights of the victims, as the victims are often voiceless in what happens,” Dixon added.