TOP OF THE CLASS. The top graduate in the 128th passing-out parade of the Regional Police Training Centre (RPTC) was Grenadian Randy Bishop, who took away four prizes and the coveted Baton of Honour. Bishop won the Commandant's Trophy, the RPTC Course No. 1 award for the most outstanding overseas student, the RPTC award for physical training, and the Captain W.H.R. Armstrong Challenge Trophy for the student with the highest aggregate. Here, Bishop getting a warm hug from his mother Edith Bishop.

ACTING COMMISSIONER of Police Bertie Hinds has called for a school of criminal justice as well as criminology and police studies in the region.

"There has been a phenomenal change in our societies and economies," he told the 128th passing-out parade at the Regional Police Training Centre (RPTC) in Paragon, Christ Church, yesterday.

"The political economy of crime has taken on new dimensions, hence new challenges for leadership and professionalism of our police forces."

He lamented the "pedestrian" pace of top quality leadership training and the absence of a tertiary level police studies institution as obstacles which "retarded" the development of police human resources in the region.

"There should be special provisions for access by police and other security agencies. The piecemeal cross-faculty jaunting to do a related course here and there is untenable in the age of our new society and political economy of crime," he said.

Plenty of scope

Hinds said a criminal justice school would solve some of the region's policing problems by making the profession more attractive, which in turn would ease the current recruiting and retention problems.

He added that there was "plenty of scope" in modern-day policing for academics.

"Crime and related matters are more complex and sophisticated and indeed challenging. Managing cybercrime, intellectual property crime, organised crime and the like needs greater intellectual capacity," Hinds said.

"Our communities need better equipped police leaders in our efforts to meaningfully contribute to the development of our line and staff service providers and to provide greater capability for the control of crime and related matters in our societies."

RPTC head Commandant Lionel Thompson said there were 37 graduates from Barbados, ten from Anguilla and three from the British Virgin Islands.

He also said this year's programme was "revolutionary" as it was conducted in two phases.

"The first phase was a five-week programme for 19 Barbadians crafted specifically for World Cup cricket. [In] the second phase, they were joined by 21 more Barbadians and 17 students from overseas," he added.

Thompson said this second phase comprised the regular 22 weeks of training but with two innovations: an attachment to the Criminal Investigations Department, and training sessions with the National Initiative for Service Excellence. (CA)