[dropcap]G[/dropcap]rievous harm at La Guerre; grievous harm at Black Bay; possession of firearm and ammunition; shootings at Bruceville; suspected suicide at Bocage . . . these were among the police headlines covering a four-day Christmas break from December 24 to 27. We are now one day short of the end of another year, normally a time for reflection. Instead we are preoccupied with reports of violence, loss of life and other unspeakable crimes.
December 24: Mogaby Doxilie of La Guerre, Babonneau, was chopped about his right arm and chest. His condition following treatment at Victoria Hospital has been reported as stable.
Also on December 24: 23-year-old Kim Raymond, 20-year-old Prince Raymond and 20-year-old Jamisha Mondesir, all residents of La Geurre, were arrested and charged with firearm and ammunition possession.
December 25: Jason Auguste of Black Bay was chopped in the head and neck. His left finger was severed. He was admitted at St. Jude Hospital.
Also on Christmas Day, 22-year-old Mario Cobb of Bruceville was found lying on a footpath with gunshot wounds to his neck and abdomen. Reports from St Jude Hospital declared him to be in stable condition.
December 27: Police reported discovering the body of a male in a prone position with a rope around his neck in Bocage, Castries. Just one week earlier Philip Epiphane had turned 51.
This year will be remembered for its record homicide rate, 57 so far. In December alone the country recorded three homicides. The victims: 30-year-old Chad Brice, better known as Chaddie of Maynard Hill, who was shot in the head on December 20; 23-year-old Terhanz St. Marie died at Victoria Hospital after being shot in Babonneau on December 28, and 30-year-old Randy Augustin died at Victoria Hospital on December 28 after being injured during an altercation on Christmas Day.
Police say they are investigating all of the cases mentioned. Can we hope for a less violent 2018? Or are we doomed to hear more announcements of families and friends “left to mourn?”
