Yesterday, Deon Ramsey was in his yard on Faber's Road when he was allegedly threatened by another man with a gun. Tonight, his family claims that rather than going after the suspect, police ran into their family yard, pulled out their guns, and detained Ramsey without charges. They'd reportedly told him they were only going to ask a few questions, but up to this morning, he was still in a jail cell.
His mother told us today that she just wants her son home because she believes he didn't commit any crimes. Joan Ramsey has lost two sons already, the most recent being David Castillo, who was abducted and killed last August.
Now Ramsey is worried for the safety of a third son. She spoke with Courtney Menzies this morning.
Joan Ramsey, Son Was Detained
"A young man came behind him and touched him on the shoulder and call him by his name and he said, what's up, Deon? And my son turn around and by the time my son say anything, he see the boy lift up his shirt and he run because he see the gun and my son run. The boy turn back and asked everybody in the yard with an ignorant way, what is going on with them. Nobody answered and the young man walked backwards out of the yard, get on his bike, and he left."
"The police came without we even call them, we didn't even get a break to call the police. They came and they were pointing guns in the boys' face in the front and my daughter was telling them to be careful how they're pointing the gun because a lot of children are in the yard, and it's just women and children in the back. So they went in my son's room, and my son was telling them that he's not pressing charges because they're asking him questions and he said he's not pressing charges. So they told him, just let's go with me, we'll bring you back. And thus morning when I took something for him to eat, they told us from last night they detained him. Detained him for what? They said they were only going to take him and ask him a few questions and bring him back."
"My Deon, he's not a troublesome child, he dive, he catch lobster, he catch conchs, and he recently get a job and he was supposed to work 5:00 this morning. He thought they were going to release him last night but they didn't."
Courtney Menzies:
"Is this the first time the police have done something like this to your family, harass your boys?"
Joan Ramsey, Son Was Detained
"Well, they go there every so often and they go and they that they are doing their job. They go and they ask them their name, they manhandle them and stuff like that, I don't know the reason they detained my son because he doesn't do anything, he's not a problem child, my children don't go out there to cause problem with anybody. Im not saying they don't drink, they drink yes but they don't go out on the street and cause problems."
Ramsey also fears that her son will be kept in custody throughout the long weekend.
