Student's death sparks Safe School programme
October 23, 2006
The St. James police are looking at introducing the Safe Schools Programme at Maldon High School in the parish following an altercation that left a male student dead and another hospitalised with stab wounds last Thursday.
"We are definitely considering it," said Superintendent Warren Clarke, commanding officer for the parish.
"However, the programme works best and must be supported by a firm posture of discipline by the school administration."
Increased violence
Cleon Levine of Granville, St. James, was fatally stabbed outside the school gates. The fifth-form student was allegedly attacked by a relative of another student, who was stabbed and injured earlier on the school compound.
The Safe Schools Programme is a Ministry of National Security project, introduced in September 2004 to reduce the incidence of violence in primary and high school level institutions.
Reports are that since September, there have been five cases of stabbing at Maldon High School. The institution has been dogged by controversy since the dismissal of Derrick Wilson as provisional principal in July by the Ministry of Education.
Supt. Clarke told The Gleaner that investigators were close to apprehending the primary suspect....
Author: Nagra Plunkett
Source: Jamaica Gleaner
