Need new Police Chief

This may sound racist but it is more like the truth..

It is racist as you are insinuating that only black people or islanders steal? I beg to differ with you. We have whites, Hispanics, and even cruisers off the ships that steal. No need for racist remarks.
There is a new Police Chief.

You sound very knowledgeable about crime and the VIPD. Which chief needs to go? How about our new Commissioner? He is not from the VI. What do you think of his efforts so far?

Just my 2 cents, but the STT police chief Rodney Querrard is an honest person. Personally he hates me, but that is ok because I still respect him.

Ronnie i did not mention any ethnic group , color, or religion ,where on earth did you come up with that one. You are well aware of the group i am talking about not the other 90 percent of the good folks of the islands.
Does anyone have some good ideas on how to cut back on crime in the VI. What do we need to do, any ideas?

It is very obvious when you make these statements. "It is the local island folks that are doing the crime not the great people who have relocated to the islands over the years." It doesn't take a genius to figure who you are talking about. You think I fell off a turnip truck?

NoOne: Rodney Querrard has retired.

I think you completely misunderstood i am talking about the ten percent or less of people in general who break the law color, religion etc. has nothing to do with breaking the law. I hope i did not offend any one or that they took what i said personally because that was not my intention.

When was the last serious crime commited from a person from a cruise ship??

The one that I remember the most is when one of them swallowed a $50k diamond in a jewellery store.

http://stthomassource.com/content/news/local-news/2003/12/27/man-arrested-after-swallowing-diamond

How about cruise ship employes that steal your cell phone number and racks up thousands of dollars on your cell phone bill, without you knowing until you try to make a call and your phone is shut off due to over $5,000 in overseas calls. Then you have to fight and prove to your provider that you didn't make those calls and didn't do anything illegal.

I know of a lot illegal activities that are carried out by non-locals, especially in the East End area.

Many transplants have been arrested on all 3 islands for a number of different crimes.

I hope I'm not out of line chiming in as i dont live in the VI, yet anyways. Im not on island so all i can speak to is my opinion, for what its worth lol. Ive been reading for months on the crime rate and personally it seem to me that there are two main issues: And neither are the police (although It sounds like some could do a bit better)

1. Lack of harsh consequences : What are the REAL punishments like for people who commit crimes in the VI? Are the sentences carried out? Do the criminals have REAL loss of comfort once in jail? If someone's knows there are no real concenquices for their actions they are FAR more likely to commit a crime. What's the possibility the mainland gvmt would get back into working with the VI (seems now they just ignore it).

For example: here in Arizona we have Sherif Joe Arpaio. If you've ever read anything on him you will find that he is NO BS! He sticks to his guns, he is fair but wants all criminals to understand that there are real life consequences for their actions. Inmates sleep in tents in the AZ desert at temps of 120, the men wear pink uniforms and they are fed stale bread and green (colored) bologna. Absolutely no creature comforts, this isn't a resort, its JAIL. I think it's effective, of course we still have crime here but it seems very removed.

2. Parental support: Many threads I read talk about how the people committing these crimes are young men into drugs and gangs. Is there an outreach program in place? Let's face it, the majority (not all) people who fall into gangs or high levels of criminal activity are unfortunates that probably didn't have the support of their families. Sometimes to no fault of the parents, single mother working 3 jobs or whatever but the reason is all still the same. To feel like they belong. Besides doing the block watch programs which I think is a good idea,, there needs to be some sort of structure in place for young men especially to become part of a good family, try to establish a skill etc. Nothing happens over night, but if steps aren't taken to get it going in the right direction, it's going to be very very bad.

I'm no professor of psyc nor am I Mother Theresa lol but what's happening to the VI is really sad. What makes it WAY worse is that if the crime rate continues on the pattern it's on, tourism will slow to a crawl causing more job loss, poverty and the crime that follows it. I have even questioned if this move is for me strictly based on the horrible crimes I've been reading about.

I love Sherriff Joe. I wish we had a sherriff joe here.

a kid who was arrested for killing was let out on 1 mil bail. The punishments are not harsh enough in my opinion.

" It is the local island folks that are doing the crime not the great people who have relocated to the islands over the years."

Despicable.

If Texas was so great, why did you leave it? Worse, why would you try to remake our home in the image of someplace you chose to leave? In my opinion the territory already suffers from far too much influence from Texas and the Gulf coast.

By the way, the single greatest recent economic crime on the territory was perpetrated by Allen Stanford who is one of a procession of carpetbaggers from away who have exploited us, individually and as a community, for centuries.

Do the criminals have REAL loss of comfort once in jail?

For those that do end up there there, I hear Golden Grove is very nice this time of year.

" It is the local island folks that are doing the crime not the great people who have relocated to the islands over the years."

Despicable.

If Texas was so great, why did you leave it? Worse, why would you try to remake our home in the image of someplace you chose to leave? In my opinion the territory already suffers from far too much influence from Texas and the Gulf coast.

By the way, the single greatest recent economic crime on the territory was perpetrated by Allen Stanford who is one of a procession of carpetbaggers from away who have exploited us, individually and as a community, for centuries.

Excellent riposte! 🙂

The people who come on this board and holler about crime tend to dwell on the shootings (which are important) while overlooking crimes which greatly affect all of us economically and otherwise...for example, the late, great HOVENSA/HESS perpetrated numerous crimes of racism, croneyism, favoritism, etc against the local workers...sit down with ANY local ex-refinery worker and get them to talk, and you can write a book. They were paying a good salary though, and money trumps everything.

A lot of us suffer silently through invisible crimes every day...that's life, I guess.

meh, it ain't perfect, but the crime keeps the price down.

I hear Bermuda is nice.

meh, it ain't perfect, but the crime keeps the price down.

I hear Bermuda is nice.

...as long as you don't like to drive 😀
...easier to be "nice" when you don't have encumberances such as the United States Constitution...(funny, hahaha)

Cars were not allowed in Bermuda until 1946. Today Bermuda has a large number of private cars, almost one for every two inhabitants; however, only residents are allowed to drive them. This is largely because, with close to 300,000 visitors a year, allowing car rental on one of the world's most densely populated islands would quickly bring traffic to a standstill, as well as bankrupt the island's taxi industry. Car prices are much higher than in the United States, Canada, and Europe, due to heavy import duties, and residents are also limited to one car per household. The size of cars is also restricted (due to the narrow and winding roads on Bermuda), meaning that many models popular in the United States, Canada, and Europe are not available in Bermuda. Only the Governor and Premier are exempt from these restrictions.

There is no car hire (car rental); visitors may only rent low-power motor scooters; they may also use the extensive public bus system, or take taxis. The highest speed limit anywhere on the island is 35 km/h (approximately 20 mph), and it is lower in built-up and other congested areas.

By the way, the single greatest recent economic crime on the territory was perpetrated by Allen Stanford who is one of a procession of carpetbaggers from away who have exploited us, individually and as a community, for centuries.

I think STX was lucky on that one that he did not get his hooks in deeper like he did in some places. Yes STX lost a little but it could have been much, much worse!

Over this past Memorial weekend, Chicago had 40 shootings. Just sayin..........

I am not leaving Texas as i own homes there as well as Alaska and soon in the VI. You need to go back and read my post. As i said i am not racist nor do i care about religion or politics, couldn't care less. If you are comfortable with your crime rate great but other folks are not. We are running our tourist off which is your bread and butter, do as you wish. I have apologized for stepping on any ones toes and it is the last time i will apologise. I asked to have this thread removed because of the controversy i created.It was created to see how other people feel not cause a war. Enough said.

what is the population of chicago? 7-8 people shot over the weekend is fricking excesive for our population. Just saying.

" It is the local island folks that are doing the crime not the great people who have relocated to the islands over the years."

Despicable.

If Texas was so great, why did you leave it? Worse, why would you try to remake our home in the image of someplace you chose to leave? In my opinion the territory already suffers from far too much influence from Texas and the Gulf coast.

By the way, the single greatest recent economic crime on the territory was perpetrated by Allen Stanford who is one of a procession of carpetbaggers from away who have exploited us, individually and as a community, for centuries.

Excellent riposte! 🙂

The people who come on this board and holler about crime tend to dwell on the shootings (which are important) while overlooking crimes which greatly affect all of us economically and otherwise...for example, the late, great HOVENSA/HESS perpetrated numerous crimes of racism, croneyism, favoritism, etc against the local workers...sit down with ANY local ex-refinery worker and get them to talk, and you can write a book. They were paying a good salary though, and money trumps everything.

A lot of us suffer silently through invisible crimes every day...that's life, I guess.

I have very good friends at Hovensa (some used to work there, some still do). I don't know what crimes you're talking about when it comes to HOV but I know of a local employee who has five lawsuits againts HOV and continued to work there anyway. I hear of several more who try to get out of work and still get paid by feigning work-related injuries that they caused themselves by not following instructions. And I know the pain that STX is suffering because of HOV closure. What crime by HOV are you talking about? Do you live on STX??? Now that HOV is gone, I hope you step in and offer better solutions to our suffering island. Racism, cronyism, favoritism against local workers??? Did you work there? There are many sides to this story. You obviously listened only to one. I'm NOT saying all local workers are bad; I am saying that they're not all good, and this applies to all of HOV. But for you to malign a company that fed thousands on this island even as it is operating on billion dollar losses is very narrow-minded and ignorant.
But we STX people (yes, I am now a proud STX citizen) will rise above this. I returned after the shutdown because I believe in the island and its people. We learned our lessons and no longer to take things for granted. There are crimes. There are wrongdoings. But for those who work hard and are honest and want to succeed, STX is looking ahead to changes and better times.

" It is the local island folks that are doing the crime not the great people who have relocated to the islands over the years."

Despicable.

If Texas was so great, why did you leave it? Worse, why would you try to remake our home in the image of someplace you chose to leave? In my opinion the territory already suffers from far too much influence from Texas and the Gulf coast.

By the way, the single greatest recent economic crime on the territory was perpetrated by Allen Stanford who is one of a procession of carpetbaggers from away who have exploited us, individually and as a community, for centuries.

Excellent riposte! 🙂

The people who come on this board and holler about crime tend to dwell on the shootings (which are important) while overlooking crimes which greatly affect all of us economically and otherwise...for example, the late, great HOVENSA/HESS perpetrated numerous crimes of racism, croneyism, favoritism, etc against the local workers...sit down with ANY local ex-refinery worker and get them to talk, and you can write a book. They were paying a good salary though, and money trumps everything.

A lot of us suffer silently through invisible crimes every day...that's life, I guess.

I have very good friends at Hovensa (some used to work there, some still do). I don't know what crimes you're talking about when it comes to HOV but I know of a local employee who has five lawsuits againts HOV and continued to work there anyway. I hear of several more who try to get out of work and still get paid by feigning work-related injuries that they caused themselves by not following instructions. And I know the pain that STX is suffering because of HOV closure. What crime by HOV are you talking about? Do you live on STX??? Now that HOV is gone, I hope you step in and offer better solutions to our suffering island. Racism, cronyism, favoritism against local workers??? Did you work there? There are many sides to this story. You obviously listened only to one. I'm NOT saying all local workers are bad; I am saying that they're not all good, and this applies to all of HOV. But for you to malign a company that fed thousands on this island even as it is operating on billion dollar losses is very narrow-minded and ignorant.
But we STX people (yes, I am now a proud STX citizen) will rise above this. I returned after the shutdown because I believe in the island and its people. We learned our lessons and no longer to take things for granted. There are crimes. There are wrongdoings. But for those who work hard and are honest and want to succeed, STX is looking ahead to changes and better times.

Interesting comments from an obviously well-insulated and sheltered individual...OK, I'll play.

Ever heard of an individual last name Spurlock who had to leave because of overtly bigoted behavior, to include name calling?
Ever heard of the Terminal workers who had to sue for positions for which they were qualified but not considered, and that they only found out about said positions because said positions were advertised in a newspaper in Los Angeles?
Ever hear of any worker training a newcomer who then became his/her boss?

The list is very long.

"feigning work-related injuries that they caused themselves by not following instructions."...that's a really good one! Tell that to the guys who suffered burn injuries, or sniffed hydrogen sulfide. It's all their fault, right?

"Now that HOV is gone, I hope you step in and offer better solutions to our suffering island."...we are NOT suffering, thank you very much. We are NOT victims. We are in a tough time, yes. People used to run from St. Kitts, Trinidad, Dominica, St. Lucia, to come to St. Croix to work. Have you visited those islands lately? St. Kitts has medical schools and amazing development is ongoing...they are even getting ready to have a music festival, which we used to have but don't anymore. Dominica and St. Lucia are crawling with tourists and high-end resorts. Those islands did not have a monolithic polluting entity sucking up the brainpower. They do very well without a polluter, and we can too. We don't need a "poor me, the refinery is gone" mentality.

St. Croix will survive the departure of the refinery. People will no longer have to pretend that they have to live up East in order to escape the fumes. The many smart people who who worked there will put their brainpower to use in ways that will better the community, and they will not have to compromise themselves for money while working for the polluter.

Any "maligning" that you perceive as being directed at the polluter pales in comparison to the human toll of cancers, asthma, and other diseases suffered by the inhabitants of "Matthew Charles" or "Machuchal".

Quit being an apologist for a polluting industry. The air here is already cleaner. You can't put a price on that. We survived before the polluter, and we will survive its departure.

Every thing you said is right on, been in the oil industry 40 years and i have seen it all including what you have described. But i know in my heart you folks will bounce back that's what makes you so great. We hope there will be a place for us in the VI before long. I will be happy to help clean beaches, pickup trash and volunteer where i am needed.

Interesting comments from an obviously well-insulated and sheltered individual...OK, I'll play.

Ever heard of an individual last name Spurlock who had to leave because of overtly bigoted behavior, to include name calling?
Ever heard of the Terminal workers who had to sue for positions for which they were qualified but not considered, and that they only found out about said positions because said positions were advertised in a newspaper in Los Angeles?
Ever hear of any worker training a newcomer who then became his/her boss?

The list is very long.

"feigning work-related injuries that they caused themselves by not following instructions."...that's a really good one! Tell that to the guys who suffered burn injuries, or sniffed hydrogen sulfide. It's all their fault, right?

"Now that HOV is gone, I hope you step in and offer better solutions to our suffering island."...we are NOT suffering, thank you very much. We are NOT victims. We are in a tough time, yes. People used to run from St. Kitts, Trinidad, Dominica, St. Lucia, to come to St. Croix to work. Have you visited those islands lately? St. Kitts has medical schools and amazing development is ongoing...they are even getting ready to have a music festival, which we used to have but don't anymore. Dominica and St. Lucia are crawling with tourists and high-end resorts. Those islands did not have a monolithic polluting entity sucking up the brainpower. They do very well without a polluter, and we can too. We don't need a "poor me, the refinery is gone" mentality.

St. Croix will survive the departure of the refinery. People will no longer have to pretend that they have to live up East in order to escape the fumes. The many smart people who who worked there will put their brainpower to use in ways that will better the community, and they will not have to compromise themselves for money while working for the polluter.

Any "maligning" that you perceive as being directed at the polluter pales in comparison to the human toll of cancers, asthma, and other diseases suffered by the inhabitants of "Matthew Charles" or "Machuchal".

Quit being an apologist for a polluting industry. The air here is already cleaner. You can't put a price on that. We survived before the polluter, and we will survive its departure.

We obviously see things from different sides of the fence. I have worked in those islands you mentioned and I can tell you that the big difference lies in either two things - incentives from the government and/or the hospitability of the local people. In those other islands, they always act like they're glad to have you. Not so on St Croix, where they're always afraid the whites will take over. And if you're going to tell me that this island has excellent customer service, you're a minority. I was on a plane flying out of STX when a woman passenger swore she would never return to St Croix where her parents were born (she now resides in GA). She had a long litany of the incompetence and rudeness she encountered.
St Croix has a lot of growing up to do in the area of tourism and customer service in general. And I will let the displaced HOV workers that they're not really suffering and should not be worried. Most of them are leaving the island anyway.