![]() Gillett in 2021 | |
Date | 14 July 2021 |
---|---|
Time | ca 9:30 pm local time |
Location | Placencia Beach Club, Placencia, Stann Creek |
Type | Unlawful police killing |
Target | Two teenagers |
Perpetrator | Two plain clothes police officers, one security guard |
Deaths | 1 (Gillett) |
Non-fatal injuries | 1 (Palacio) |
Convicted | 1 (Martinez) |
Convictions | Manslaughter by negligence |
Sentence | 18 years |
On 14 July 2021, at approximately 9:30 pm local time, in Placencia, Stann Creek, 14-year-old Laddie Gillett was shot and killed by police corporal Kareem Martinez. The incident sparked widespread protests in Belize, being popularly deemed an unlawful police killing. Martinez was found guilty of manslaughter by negligence for the killing on 21 April 2023, and sentenced to 18 years in prison.
The use of excessive force (including fatal) by law enforcement in Belize is thought to be on the rise, following a yet unmitigated boom in violent and organised crime since the late 1990s. [n 1] A 2019 study by Hannes Warnecke-Berger of the University of Leipzig noted 'police brutality seems to have become an everyday practice [which includes] the beating of children in the streets, torture of suspects in custody as well as police killings.' [1] Similarly, a 2021 poll by the World Justice Project found that only 47 percent of respondents believed police do not use excessive force, with only 35 percent believing police were investigated for misconduct. [2]
On the night of 14 July, 14-year-old Laddie Gillett and his 19-year-old friend Thomas Palacio were making their way back to Chabil Mar Villas in Placencia, Stann Creek, where they were holidaying, at a brisk pace in order to beat the COVID-19 curfew, after having dropped off a female friend back at her resort. [n 2] Shortly after 9:30 pm local time, in front of the Placencia Beach Club, the boys came across two men in dark clothing confronting them with guns (who were not uniformed, and did not identify themselves as police officers, according to Palacio). [n 3] Believing they were about to be robbed at gunpoint, the boys immediately ran away from the armed men, whereupon Gillett was shot and killed by police corporal Kareem Martinez (with his 9 mm service pistol), while Palacio was tackled and physically assaulted by police constable Claude Augustine and a nearby security guard Devon Castillo. [n 4]
By 15 July, Martinez had been detained pending criminal and internal investigations. [3] On 16 July, the corporal was charged with manslaughter by negligence and granted bail of $8,000 while awaiting trial. [4] The internal investigation led to Martinez’s dismissal from the Police Department by the year's end. [5] The former corporal was found guilty of manslaughter by negligence on 21 April 2023, and sentenced to 18 years in Central Prison on 23 May. [n 5]
The incident sparked outrage across the country, with multiple candlelit vigils for Gillett, and protests demanding that Martinez be charged with murder, and further demanding police reform. [n 6] The Prime Minister, Johnny Briceno, condemned the incident, stating 'there must be consequences' for the killing, and agreeing that police needed continuous training on the proper use of lethal force. [6] The Commissioner of Police, Chester Williams, said the shooting was not a justifiable use of force. [7] The Minister of Youth, Kevin Bernard, echoed Briceno's and Williams's sentiments. [8] The Human Rights Commission denounced the killing and stressed that 'this kind of systematic abuse of authority by some police officers and their disregard of the humanity and dignity of Belizean citizens can no longer be countenanced.' [5] The Progressive Party condemned the 'recurrent issues of brutality' by the police and 'diminished charges assigned to officers involved […] the scandalously low rate of successful prosecution of said officers, and the light sentences accorded to the few that would be found guilty.' [5] The United Democratic Party called for 'a full and objective investigation,' urging the Police Department to ensure officers refrained from excessive force. [9]
Gillett's family called for the passing of Laddie's Law, which would establish civilian oversight of the Police Department, among other policing reforms. [10] They founded the Justice for Laddie Foundation within a year to 'to carry on Laddie's legacy and provide support for Belize's young people.' [11]