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PHILIPSBURG--The confiscation of items such as computers and telephones was cited as one of the main bottlenecks for the Police Force in a Council for Law Enforcement report on the daily confiscation of items by the police.

The report was one of two the Council presented to Justice Minister Dennis Richardson on Friday. According to the report, these items “are not centrally managed or registered. With the absence of an administrator, there is no overview of such items and the storage is scattered.”

The report also said management safeguarded insufficiently the interests of security and transparency in the confiscation of these items. “This is an undesirable situation and needs to be addressed urgently.”

As it relates to facilities, the Council said an alternative had to be found for the storage of large vehicles and vessels, because St Maarten does not have an appropriate and secure storage location for these confiscated items.

Overall, the Council said there had been improvement in the area of confiscated items, especially with regard to high-risk items. To maintain progress and work towards integrated compliant procedures, the Council has made seven recommendations for improvement in its report.

For the report, the Council examined the procedures used for confiscation of items by the Police Force and the Kingdom Detective Cooperation Team RST. The Council also looked into whether the competent authorities comply with applicable laws and regulations, whether there is sufficient knowledge among the staff and whether this is put in practice sufficiently in the workplace.

With regard to storage of items, the Council inspected the manner of storage and registration and surveyed the storage facilities. The Council also looked at the supervision by those ultimately responsible within the Police Force and the Prosecutor’s Office, and reviewed the risks associated with the management and control over the confiscation of items.

The Council said adhering to prescribed procedures “safeguards the limitation of infringement on private property rights, secured custody of materials of evidence and confiscated goods, while protecting society from harmful items.”

The Council said the Court Registrar is appointed by law as the custodian of confiscated items and therefore is charged with and responsible for the registration and storage of items.

The findings in the report indicate that these tasks presently are not performed in accordance with the legal obligations.

“Although there are explanations on reasons to do so, the Council concludes that as long as the law does not provide otherwise, those obligations must be fulfilled by the Court Registrar for the sake of compliance.

“In practice, the Police Force is disproportionately burdened by the consequences of the current situation regarding the Court Registrar’s role where it concerns handling of confiscated items. As a result, the police are now responsible for storage, registration and the handling of bottlenecks concerning these items.

“To counter criminal behaviour and rid the community of harmful items, a proper handling of high-risk items is paramount,” said the Council. “With the exception of some points of concern, the Police Force and the RST have implemented the required procedures.

“The registration, management and further handling of high-risk confiscated items such as money, weapons and narcotics are well in place at both the Police Force and the Detective Cooperation Team. From the inspection conducted by the Council, it appears that the Police Force has made progress in the area of confiscated items, since its transition period. The required know-how about the legal framework of the confiscation of items for investigations is sufficient among police officers.”

Security

The Council also presented the minister with the report entitled “The security of public officials in St Maarten” on Friday, May 15. This report details findings of an inspection related to concerns regarding an increase of incidents in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom.

The Council said in a press release that the report addressed to what extent the security of public figures and officials is regulated and organised in St. Maarten. The Council said public officials served for and by the sake of the democratic and legal order.

“It is thus expected that they must be able to execute their duties in an unobstructed manner. The security of public officials is, after all, essential to a well-functioning democratic legal order and society,” the release said.

The Council said this form of security was not addressed adequately on a formal basis. “The Council is of the opinion that there is need for a coherent policy and implementation based on regulation. Pursuant to the Police Kingdom Act, security tasks are assigned to the Police Force, as it is generally charged with the enforcement of the law and order,” the release said.

“The Council on Law Enforcement, furthermore, discovered a lack of consistency in the current practices of security of public figures and officials in St Maarten. The current situation is, above all, one of ad hoc performance, with many different players and missing structures of authority and accountability.”

The Council believes an integral system of security for St Maarten should be drafted. However, before this can be established, the Government of St Maarten needs to determine what security level is necessary for public figures, whilst also taking St Maarten’s budgetary constraints into account.

“In the view of the Council, the existing practices persisted because no serious incidents or concrete threat of significance have occurred in St Maarten. The Council considers that despite the perception of St Maarten being a Friendly Island, the protection of public figures should be established based on law and policy.”

According to the Council, the regulation of the security of public figures is on the agenda of both Minister of General Affairs Marcel Gumbs and Justice Minister Richardson.

“The Council is encouraged that both ministers have initiated concrete steps aimed at regulation. The key, now, is for both ministers to collaborate appropriately on the matter so as to adopt appropriate measures, rules and regulations for a professional approach, as well as a well-structured system of security for dignitaries. This, taking national security into account.”

The reports that were presented will be accessible online in six weeks on the Council on Law Enforcement website

www.raadrechtshandhaving.com .

Presenting the reports to Richardson were St. Maarten’s Council for Law Enforcement member Franklyn Richards and Council Secretariat Chief Inspector Gerard van Voorst.