Police ‘ill equipped’ for domestic abuse (The Tribune)

Oct. 7, 2020 – The Tribune

Equality Bahamas founder and co-director Alicia Wallace featured in The Tribune on October 7, 2020.

From The Tribune:

 

A LOCAL activist yesterday criticised the Royal Bahamas Police Force for its “ill-equipped policing system” to effectively respond to the needs of domestic violence victims, saying more measures and community partnerships are needed to better protect vulnerable victims.

“Policing cannot be effective without building relationships with other government bodies, NGOs and members of the society,” said Equality Bahamas director, Alicia Wallace.

She was responding to remarks made by Police Commissioner Paul Rolle, who told reporters on Monday that police need facilities to house domestic violence victims trying to escape toxic environments.

[…]

Calling the matter “unacceptable”, Ms Wallace said Mr Rolle’s remarks show the RBPF’s disconnect from other agencies and society.

“The fact that the RBPF does not have access to safe houses underlines the point Equality Bahamas consistently makes about ill-equipped police and a policing system that fails to meet our needs,” she told The Tribune yesterday.

“It is unacceptable for police to say they have no safe houses when we know Social Services has responsibility for assisting in housing. It becomes clearer, day after day, that government ministries, departments and agencies are operating in isolation and fail to understand the broader system they operate in.

“They should know the resources and mandates of the other bodies and be able to make necessary connections.”