Dear Editor,
Stabroek News of Tuesday 16 (p2) reports the Crime Chief as stating “We can’t charge without evidence.” The implication is that in the absence of a statement from Karen Kerr, who is being treated for gunshot wounds, the police will not proceed in this shooting incident. The reports I have seen on this incident indicate the following:
A woman is shot and she is taken to the hospital for treatment. Reports are made to the police and a licensed firearm holder surrenders his weapon to the police. The reports include the suggestion that the firearm holder admitted shooting the woman (two gunshots, therefore unlikely to be accidental).
The questions that occur to me given the above are: How can the police say there is no evidence to proceed – even in the absence of a statement from the victim of the shooting? Do the police have the capacity to link the weapon that has been surrendered to the woman’s injuries? Do the statements made to the police have no weight? If the police have no statements, are our daily newspapers more effective about gathering information about crimes than the police?
The Crime Chief’s reported responses to the Stabroek News suggest to me that every licensed firearm holder is free to inflict gunshot wounds on others provided he or she ensures that the victims refuse to make statements to the police.
Yours faithfully,
Karen de Souza
for Red Thread
