Cop in Uniform Faces Court for Firing Gun in Public

A police officer was taken to court this morning after he was caught discharging a firearm in public.  Police Constable Richard Gillett was caught on video, in his uniform, firing a warning shot in front of a police booth on Antelope Street in Belize City.  Love News understands that the incident occurred on Tuesday night and by the following day, Gillett was detained by fellow cops.  Attorney Dickie Bradley represented Gillett in court and expressed hope that the recently installed Police Commissioner would reconsider the charges.

Richard “Dickie” Bradley, Attorney: “Not every time a policeman makes a little small mistake they should take a little mole hill and turn it into a mountain. The officer didn’t point his gun at anybody, nobody was in any danger, he had a reason why he did that you could see it on the video somebody was coming out of the little police booth. You could hear the voices that they were being disrespectful and aggressive with the officer. They are under pressure, they can’t take no chance, which crime did he commit ? A police officer has been issued with a firearm to protect himself and to protect us. This should be an administrative matter. I appreciate that the police have changed the charge sheet to charge him under the Summary Jurisdiction Act which allows the magistrate to apply have granted bail to him but if the man didn’t shoot after nobody, nobody was in any danger, he’s the one who was being aggressed, so I’m hoping that they will withdraw the charge and he will go to a tribunal.”

Gillett was initially charged under the Firearms Act, which would have prevented the court from offering bail and resulted in his remand to Belize Central Prison.  However, his court book was reportedly sent back and amended to reflect the charge under the Summary Jurisdiction Act instead of the Firearms Act. This change allowed for the possibility of bail.  With no objection from the Police Prosecutor, Magistrate Ludlow Black granted Gillett bail in the amount of $1,000 plus one surety of the same amount. Gillett is scheduled to reappear in court on July 24.