As the end of October draws nearer, Joanna Joseph, the mother of 17-year-old Arnold Joseph who was fatality shot by police on May 22, leaves the island to return to work. Police said Arnold was one of three passengers aboard a “suspicious vehicle” that failed to stop when ordered to. Speaking to the STAR earlier this month, Arnold’s mother said it made no sense sticking around when the authorities refuse to entertain her concerns.
Attorney-at-law and co-ordinator of the National Centre for Legal Aid and Human Rights Inc, Mary Francis, says it is unfortunate that five months after Arnold’s death, no one has been held accountable. Echoing earlier sentiments by Arnold’s mother, Francis speculated that if it were a citizen who had killed a police officer, the matter would have been treated differently. Francis says the state should set the example, considering one of their own fired the fatal shot. She believes that the authorities are deliberately dragging their feet.
“This is not right,” said Francis. “The duty of the state is to protect the rights of citizens. When it is the police that are suspected of wrong-doing, they should be seen as going out of their way to resolve the matter in a credible manner. They are there to protect life and property. They are not above the law.”
Francis says that Arnold’s untimely death further highlights the need for independent investigations into fatal police shootings and other incidents involving police officers. She pointed to the different police versions of the incident. Initially, the police claimed a 9mm firearm was “recovered from the individuals” but later said it had been found “en route” by a team of officers. To date, however, there have been no firearm-related police charges. It bothers Francis that the officers involved in the chase that ended with Arnold’s death remain on duty, “as if nothing unusual had happened.” There has not been an inquest.
“So,” she said, “we can see they’re trying to hide or they’re trying to avoid responsibility for what took place. And that has been a historical thing. They do what they do, excuses are offered, and then time goes by and the matter is forgotten.”
Additionally: “While we’re talking about forty years of Independence, monuments and so forth, these important aspects of life in Saint Lucia suggest we have not moved very far after all.”
