And while the Department of Youth Services is working for young people many Belizeans are under the impression that the police department is working against young black men.
It's something we challenged the COMPOL on when he appeared on this morning's SunUp on 7, and he told us that if black men are profiled it's because more often than not, they're guilty.
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
"I notice that for the past couple of months channel 7 has been campaigning against the police. And for whatever reason or the other."
Reporter:
"Is it really campaigning, or is it highlighting what's happening?"
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
"It went to the extent to say in the Friday newscast that Laddie was shot because he was black, now I don't know how we arrive at that. I think it's an unfair statement, we need to be extremely careful of the things we say because it can lead to other things occurring, we don't want young black men to believe that the police are targeting them because that is not the case."
Reporter:
"But if you reflect on the interactions between black men and the police, black men are the ones that are the most targeted by police and profiled the most by police officers."
Senior. Supt Bart Jones, Attorney-At-Law
"That might be from a position because we have generally because we have a Belize city-based media, so Belize City is like the media center and so they will focus on issues in Belize City, but across the country you go to the north there is a different dynamic in terms of the persons that the police have to interact with. So it's different."
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
"When you see a robbery report who is normally the suspect in Belize City?"
Reporter:
"It would be normally black men."
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
"When you hear these shootings happening who are normally the suspects and the victims?"
Senior. Supt Bart Jones, Attorney-At-Law
"A situation occurs on the street, and we do not know what would have drawn that police officer or those police officers suspicion at the time. To just for us to say well the police officer had no reason to - we don't know the police officer in the corner or patrolling in a vehicle what he saw or some activity that would have drawn his suspicion and what may be of no suspicion to you or to my friend here might not be the same for us."
