By Prince Moore
Justice Minister Delroy Chuck says while the proposed sentencing guidelines for murder may not serve as a deterrent, it will send a strong signal to potential criminals.
The government has submitted proposed amendments to the Offences Against the Person Act to increase the mandatory minimum sentence for murder from 15 years before eligibility for parole to 40 years.
Mr. Chuck admits that the amendments to the sentencing guidelines alone may not deter people from committing murders.
"They may not be dissuaded because we don't know how they're thinking before they plan, arrange and engage in the crime, but we hope with technology, with the benefit of witnesses who will come forward and we can capture them, then we want to make sure that the possibility of them engaging in similar criminality is reduced to zero," he said.
Mr. Chuck added that an analysis will be done on how prison spaces will be affected by the proposed increased mandatory minimum sentences for murder, coupled with stiffer penalties for gun crimes under the New Firearms Act.
He admitted that Jamaica's prisons need "significant upgrading", and suggested that more high security facilities will also need to be built "to better allow prisoners to be treated humanely".
