The Tribune

By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

A PUBLIC dispute has erupted between National Security Minister Wayne Munroe and the Police Staff Association over whether police officers can legally carry non-lethal weapons.

At issue is whether new legislation is required. In a letter dated February 9, the association claimed it “clearly communicated that the only lawful means by which non-lethal weapons can be introduced into policing is through an Act of Parliament — legislation that has never been advanced.”

Without that legislation, the group warned, officers responding to dangerous situations are “left with a single legal option: the use of lethal force,” exposing them to “significant legal and personal risk.”

Mr Munroe flatly rejected that claim yesterday. He said the Firearms Act already governs non-lethal weapons and requires no amendment for officers to carry them with proper approval.

He suggested some officers may misunderstand the law, a situation he finds “distressing”.

“They’re supposed to be the ones who, if you have a taser without permission, arrest you, investigate it, and know which section of the Firearms Act to charge you under,” Mr Munroe said.

He said no further legislation is needed and that the commissioner of police already has authority under the Act to license and approve such weapons.

The association maintains that the absence of clear legislative authority has left officers without proportional force options. It argued that non-lethal weapons are necessary to allow officers to “respond proportionately to escalating situations without immediately resorting to deadly force.”

The PSA also cited recent cases in which officers dispatched to confront armed people were later charged with manslaughter or murder while acting in the execution of their duties.

Mr Munroe questioned whether officers had formally applied for permission to carry non-lethal weapons. If officers are trusted with lethal weapons, he said, there should be no assumption that non-lethal tools would automatically be denied.

“Likely it is that none of them have asked for permission, which means it can’t be something that they seriously want, because if it’s something that a policeman seriously wants and doesn’t know the law as to how to ask for it, that would be truly distressing,” the national security minister said.

He noted that officers routinely apply to have lethal firearms licensed, including for personal carry of service-issued weapons.

“You mean they don’t know that you could ask for the purchase of non-lethal if it’s covered by the Firearms Act?” Mr Munroe asked.

The minister said decisions about equipping officers with non-lethal weapons would also depend on budget priorities. He noted that cameras, recruitment, vehicles and ammunition already compete for limited funds.

“What of those budget items would they like us not to buy?” Mr Munroe asked. “He requires a budget to recruit, so it’s a matter of prioritising what you spend on. It’s not really a game, it’s a manner of prioritising it.”

The PSA also said it had written “several letters requesting meetings with the Minister, many of which went unanswered,” adding that when engagement did occur, it followed “persistent effort by the PSA.” It said it had met with the minister on only two occasions and described both meetings as “fruitless.”

Mr Munroe disputed that characterisation.

“They don’t require letters to meet me,” he said.

He said the PSA’s most recent letter was sent to the prime minister, who referred it to him. He instructed his permanent secretary to arrange a meeting, he said, adding that his “door is open”.