Professor Anthony Harriott

Jamaica’s crime problem has continued to deteriorate. It is constantly changing. Despite the efforts of the responsible agencies as a country, we have not been able to effectively control it. These realities suggest at least three things. That we should seek to better understand this problem. That we should apply this knowledge to constantly improve the policies and strategies for preventing and controlling it. Finally, we should evaluate these strategies. The research efforts of Professor Harriott and other researchers in the Institute of Criminal Justice and Security and Justice, and the various departments of the Faculty of Social Sciences (a) extends the analysis of selected aspects of the crime problem (b) proposes solutions as policy and strategy that are grounded in our empirical understanding of the problem, and (c) evaluates some of the more promising responses and experiments at crime control by the police and other agencies.

Professor Anthony Harriott
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ORGANIZED CRIME AND POLITICS - BREAKING THE NEXUS

In the book Organized Crime and Politics - Breaking the Nexus an attempt is made to analyse a particular expression of the nexus between politics and crime, that is, organized crime. It describes the rise of organized crime in Jamaica and its effort to consolidate its hold in the cities and towns. The analysis is extended by further exploring two critical aspects of the problem – political corruption and party financing. By focusing on the crime-politics nexus, the book shows how the crime problem has travelled from the margins into the mainstream of the polity and society. Institutionalized patterns of behaviour, including the methods of political mobilization and organization, and aspects of political culture are interrogated in an attempt to better understand why and how organized crime is facilitated.

Discussions of crime in Jamaica are generally considered to be almost useless if they are not solution-seeking. An attempt is therefore made to move the discussion beyond an analysis of the problems to possible approaches to solving and resolving them. It sketches some possibilities but restricts the discussion to the control of organized crime.

CRIME AND DEVELOPMENT – THE JAMAICAN EXPERIENCE

By defrauding the state criminal groups rob the country of resources for development. In the book Crime and Development the Jamaica Experience, which was coauthored by Prof. Alfred Francis, Dr. Godfrey Gibbision, and Mr. Claremont Kirton of the Department of Economics, the nature of the interaction between crime and economic growth and development is empirically investigated. This work estimates the economic cost of crime and maps the extent and nature of business victimization, that is, the direct impact of crime on firms. It also analyses the effect of specified factors (variables) on crime. These factors include the effects of economic growth, the opportunity cost of crime including the effects of unemployment and the level of secondary school enrolment, the level of inequality, and enforcement and punishment. Specifically, the study attempts to model a simultaneous system of equations consisting, inter alia, of supply functions for murder, rape and carnal abuse, shooting and robbery. This study is designed to advance our understanding of the sources of the crime problem and to strengthen the empirical foundations for the elaboration of policy.

Publications of Anthony Harriott
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It estimates that crime results in a substantial economic cost to the society. It reports an inverse relationship with GDP, and finds that inequality motivates violent crime and that effective law enforcement serves as a useful deterrent to crime. This study therefore argues that while economic growth is an important, perhaps even a necessary condition for effective control of the crime problem, it is not sufficient. A balanced approach to development that takes into account social factors, reducing inequality (especially inequality that is not derived from differential effort and performance) and improving educational achievement (not just enrolment), as well as ensuring effective and just law enforcement, is critical in ensuring a stable and safe society.

BENDING THE TREND LINE – THE CHALLENGE OF CONTROLLING VIOLENCE

TThis monograph is an amplification of Dr. Harriott’s professorial inaugural lecture and a preliminary report on a more comprehensive study of criminal violence in Jamaican society. In it he argues, first, that a subculture of violence has emerged in Jamaica and presents considerable evidential support for this in the bahaviour patterns and attitudes of the population to the use of violence. Secondly, that we are still at a point in the formation of this subculture that permits a reversal ofthis process. Thirdly, that aborting this process requires, among other things, a more robust law enforcement, that, must, however be based on fairness, respect for and service to the people; and not narrow criminal fighting.

The analysis develops by establishing the distinctiveness of the Jamaican crime pattern, that is, the predominance of violence and that the use of violence is not limited to habitual criminals and gunmen, but is more widely used by ordinary citizens as a means of dealing with everyday social conflicts. The indicators of the emergence of a subculture of violence are highlighted. These measures show that this behavior pattern finds considerable support in the attitude set and beliefs of a significant minority of the population. It follows from this that the control of violence is a much greater challenge than that of simply repressing predatory street criminality.

Following from the analysis, four scenarios of the possible directions that control of the problem may take are described. The first scenario is that the problem is controlled or the trend line bent by norms that are developed within the subculture of violence, that is, by self-regulation. A second scenario is based on the efforts of the state to control violence by increased repressive means. A third scenario, which is a variant of the second, compensates for the repressive incapacity or weakness of the state by developing a crime control partnership with the criminal “dons” in the high violence communities.

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A fourth scenario is for a more democratic law enforcement coupled with social prevention measures that are consistent with our empirical understanding of the determinants of the homicide rate. Prof. Harriott suggests that there is still a window of opportunity to further advance this prospect. He draws on selected experiences at the community level to show the opportunities and possibilities.

This book was written on the invitation of the Grace Kennedy Foundation for their annual lecture series. It is dedicated to exploring the crime control options of Jamaica and discusses these options as coherent strategies. The options that we have actually taken are presented and critically analysed. These include the Crime Control Model which targets the criminal event in an effort to remove offenders from the streets rather that the bahaviour pattern. A second option is the Social Justice Model that emphasizes the prevention of

crime by socio-economic change. The third option that is presented is an Integrated Model that targets the problem in more precise ways. This would, for example, include a sharper focus on the high violence communities, pacifying them via both control and prevention measures. This model is essentially about better integrating prevention and control, and short- term and long-term measures.

Taken together, these publications are intended to further opens up the discussion on crime control policy. It is hoped that they will stimulate new ideas, and help policy-makers and decision-makers in the ministries, police force and other agencies to further clarify some of the issues and perhaps refine their policies and strategies.