Granville police shooting of Latoya Bulgin renews anger over lethal force

The police killing of Latoya Bulgin in Granville, St. James, during events linked to a protest has stirred national outrage and deepened tension between residents and the security forces. The protest followed another fatal police shooting in the community, where a 17-year-old boy was killed on Mother’s Day, May 12.

Police say officers were trying to clear an unauthorised demonstration at Granville Square when they saw a black Toyota Voxy, driven by Bulgin, dropping off protesters. According to the police account, checks showed the vehicle was unlicensed. A constable reportedly told Bulgin it would be seized, after receiving approval from the duty officer.

The police allege Bulgin said the vehicle would not be seized and that her daughter would run over and kill one of them. They say she then tried to drive off, and the constable, who was in front of the vehicle, fired one shot towards it. CCTV footage shows the officer discharging his weapon into the vehicle before it came to a stop.

Residents have also criticised what happened after the shooting. Video showed Bulgin’s body being pulled from the vehicle onto the road, then placed in the back of a police unit. Family physician Dr. Mark Ricketts said police, despite basic first-aid exposure, are not qualified to determine death and should have treated the situation as a medical emergency. He said an ambulance should have been called and that any movement should have prioritised breathing, circulation and preventing further injury.

The case follows two earlier controversial police shootings in Granville this year. On January 1, three people, including a four-year-old boy, died after a joint police-military operation in Browns Lane. Police said the team came under gunfire. In May, police said a 17-year-old was shot during a confrontation and that a Taurus G2C pistol was recovered, but his mother and residents rejected that account.

The officer involved in Bulgin’s shooting has been taken off frontline duty. Jamaicans for Justice executive director Mickel Jackson and opposition national security spokesman Fitz Jackson have called for serious scrutiny and an independent probe. INDECOM data cited in the report said 15 people had been killed by security forces in May, and 131 so far this year.