Police Boost Presence in Westmoreland Schools to Curb Violence and Bullying

Westmoreland, Jamaica— Superintendent Othneil Dobson, the police commander for Westmoreland, announced that his division has assigned school resource officers (SROs) to four of the eight secondary schools in the parish. This move aims to enhance safety and address growing concerns of violence and bullying within schools.

Dobson made the announcement during his monthly report at the Westmoreland Municipal Corporation (WMC) meeting on Thursday. He disclosed that Little London High School, Grange Hill High School, Godfrey Stewart High School, and Petersfield High School now have a permanent police presence through SROs.

“With instruction from the commissioner of police (Dr. Kevin Blake), we have increased the number of school resource officers within the schools in the division,” Dobson stated. “Four schools now have permanent school resource officers, and we are working assiduously to ensure that we stabilize any problems that come up within those schools or within the communities.”

SROs are police officers stationed in educational facilities to maintain order and discipline. They have the authority to prosecute students involved in unlawful activities on school grounds and are tasked with identifying troubled and disruptive students, reporting them to school administrators.

While four secondary schools have received SROs, the remaining four institutions in Westmoreland will also receive police attention to ensure they remain secure environments for learning.

Superintendent Dobson also urged parents and teachers to collaborate to address the increasing issue of bullying in schools. “We are saying to our teachers and our parents, let us try and work on that bullying issue that continues in our schools. If it is allowed to start there, it will turn into gangs and other activities,” he cautioned.

The move to increase police presence in schools follows a troubling pattern of violent incidents during the last school year, where several students were killed by peers and external criminal elements. One such incident occurred in Westmoreland in April when Carson Barrett, a 16-year-old student at Grange Hill High School, was shot and killed by gunmen on a motorcycle just outside the school gate.

The initiative to deploy SROs is part of a broader effort to create safer and more secure school environments, aiming to prevent the escalation of violence and ensure the well-being of students and staff.