Dream, and that's a shame.

Yes, there's 2 sides to every story, but we do know that somebody was murdered. I would think that most people would feel some sympathy for the family and also feel some outrage that a young person was so angry at "whatever" that he felt the need to butcher somebody. Also, that this beautiful island has had this kind of terrible publicity thrown on them because of there own decided to take someone elses life.

Some people are upset with some of these postings? What did they expect??

Doesn't he appear before a judge today?
There are so many unanswered questions and so much conjecture ...

If there is no evidence found in a vehicle, they don't have the right to keep it as evidence altho it must have been unnerving to recognize the get-a-way car or what they had been told was the car.

Am sure the rhetoric is going to crank up ... note the use of "evacuated" when the parents and the lawyer (spokesperson) were taken to STT for "safety." "Who would think that on U.S. territory you could experience something like that?" said Summers, who also was evacuated to St. Thomas

It would be great if we had access to the entire murder book and all its information including background stuff but we don't. and we may never know what really happened other than a young man was brutally and ruthlessly murdered. We don't even know if the one is custody acted alone (would guess not) or if there were others.

Sure, promo, he may indeed be evil but was he born that way or was it something he adopted or adopted him along the way ... the ole nature v nurture things. A sociopath has no conscience, knows right from wrong, but just doesn't care. Or was it, as someone said, a bar-room argument escalating into something way out of control because of the booze and other things unspoken or unknown.

Maybe "Maybe" got it right and one can bet that there will be stories told. Some of the players may not even be recognized as they stir the pot because of their own agenda. There will never be closure for Jamie's parents but let's hope the "System" does right for him.

Maybe it has to do with the Paradise effect. We all sit here, day after day, writing love songs and poetry about a place. We tell the locals that we love their paradise, want to live there, envy them, love their food, music, culture.....wish a dream come true...etc

Then, tragedy strikes them (no matter who yor are in the VI, this is a tradgedy) and they want to retreat and hold it close for a while. but, just as we spew love and admiration for the VI, we use that same energy to spew concern and intolerance. We mean no harm - but we feel close to these situations.

We really can't be expected to engage so deeply, yet ignore anything negative.

I wonder if the locals feel invaded by the press.

Most of the time perception is everything. I know the Virgin Islands government runs their own affairs, from an elected governor on down. However, I do believe the federal government should appear to have a larger role, if not presence, down there in the investigation, media, etc. They may or may not already, but it needs to be a larger, public show of force, even if it's just a lot of smoke and mirrors. Because a lot times, it's just simply how you portray things, in an effort to find common ground and satisfy everyone. Much of police work is having everyone walk away "feeling" their needs were given proper attention.

However, I think the long term goal at this point is to show that law abiding citizens cannot be intimidated or retaliated against for cooperation with the police. For example, when someone gets arraigned in Bucks County, PA for retail theft, they have much greater chance of going to prison than they EVER would in Philadelphia. I've seen this on both sides first hand.

The VI government has to put forth some effort in showing they will not tolerate this nonsense, but it's a whole different world down there in law enforcement, much like Philadelphia is different from the rest of the state of PA in its home rule and handling of their affairs.

It's a tuff road to travel through the sytem down there. I hope there is some sign of change.

it's nice to hear that an arrest has finally been made. we all miss jamie so much, it breaks my heart to know nothing will bring him back. however, the arrest is one step in the right direction. i hope the 18 year old arrested is somebody's bitch in jail.

I will say this though. I alluded to it in an earlier post. If this same thing happened to me when I was younger, my parents would be heart broken that I did use common sense in where I chose to hang out, along with complicating the matter in how I conducted myself once I was in the situation.

I don't think my parents would ever be at peace knowing I may aggravated the whole situation, no matter how much law enforcement can do, hypathetically.

There is no justification for this crime. But there has to be at least some mention of the fact that lack of judgement makes a person much more vulnerable, and it has to be addressed. This was no random act. A led to B led to C here.

you have no idea if jamie's actions led to the murder. were you there?
Are you saying that Jamie deserved to be murdered by scum bc he kicked a car, was out late and had been drinking?

Living in VI's is not the same as being a visitor, where you can go home to your
own comfort zone after a starry-eyed vacation, and be able to ignore any negatives that we all see when down there.
But, a week or two, or three, or four, isn't enough time for visiting people to walk in another community's shoes.
Living day to day close-up to some very sorry conditions, is a whole other story in a place that is your home, and you can't fly away so easily from.
Of course this case is horrible. After all is said and done about it, is it ever all said and done about the ongoing process of what life's about down there??
Tread softly. There are huge gaps that need to be healed. We live in a world of great turmoil, and this case is one of
many that prove it.

NEPOSTER...you just lost me on your last post.

If this had happened to you, god forbid, your parents would have been heart broken because you were gone, not because you didn't use common sense. Same thing happened when Natalie Holloway died...everybody wanted to find some fault with her. It's the same old, "blame the victim" mentality.

Put the blame where the blame is..the bottom line....whoever killed Jamie didn't have to pull a knife and stab him 7 or so times. Did Jamie have a knife? A gun? Anything?

Buy the way...i don't consider it a random act either. It's murder.

Neoposter is going off into left field somewhere. Don't take the bait.

Philadelphia's lower rate of arrest to conviction on minor crimes is due to issues related ot prison overcrowding (read the recent press - they've even reopened the old, infamous Holmesburg prison - housing violen offenders in dormitory style quarters in the basement - the same basement that was called to closure for inhumane conditions years ago). The Philly cops (aka "The Fellas") are arresting and asking for warrants, but the DAs office is calling the shots. Until there are more beds, more effeciency in the courts, cooperation of witnesses to show up when called so there isn't a need to continue and contnue -- until then, minor non-violent crimes might have to take a back-seat.

But, a Philly cop would know that.

What happened in court today? Anyone know?

People can get themselves in a jam very easily, NEPOSTER was not saying that justified his killing.
I pray that my son's use common sense every day, I have had many discussions about that very subject with them throughout their lives. I know that they don't always use good judgement sometimes, and I know they've gotten
themselves into some pretty serious jams, that could have "lead" to their deaths because of it. Being murdered is not justified but, is sometimes what happens.
It's a crap shoot every friggin' day just being alive. When you drink you are not as aware of potential danger, and
sometimes because of that reason, something that may ultimately have been avoidable, happens, and you loose your life.
That, I believe, is what he was saying.

Let's take a minute to revisit another case....where the alleged crime was committed against a local.....and the community wanted answers from the VIPD. In that case (Frett - 2005), the locals accused the police of not acting swiftly enough - and the community wanted answers and an arrest. In this case, the VIPD was accused of much of what it is being accused of today.

Interesting that the VIPD issued a statement in that case, following the civil unrest.

http://www.vipd.gov.vi/public_interest/civil_disob.aspx

Neoposter, your comparison of Philly and the USVI lacks the numbers needed to make a logical arguement. I would guess that the murder rate in Philly is lower than the murder rate in the USVI. Someone posted the info below some time ago, and I found it rather revealing....but I still travel to the USVI for vacation....I guess I'm willing to take the risk.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Defenders of the islands will often state that there is crime in the USVI just like there is every where else. But the crime rates are substantially higher in the USVI than they are in the vast majority of US cities and towns.

The crime rates in the USVI are astronomical compared to rates in similarly sized cities in the states. But what is even more shocking is the USVI crime rates compared to large US cities that are considered to be high crime. People will often state that crime in the USVI is similar to crime in large US cities, but that is not the case. I’m not trying to prevent people from vacationing in the USVI, but we should at least be honest when it comes to the numbers.

Take for example the large city that I live near, Chicago. There are approximately 26.6 times as many people living in the city of Chicago as there are in the USVI. So if Chicago had the same crime rate as the USVI, you could multiply the number of USVI crimes by 26.6.

Statistics below are from recent years.

MURDER

27 in the USVI; 450 in Chicago

If the crime rates were the same in the two places, there would be 718 murders in Chicago; that means the murder rate is 60% higher in the USVI than in Chicago.

RAPE

66 in the USVI; 1693 in Chicago

If the crime rates were the same in the two places, there would be 1756 rapes in Chicago; that means the rape rate is 4% higher in the USVI than in Chicago.

ARSON

55 in the USVI; 683 in Chicago

If the crime rates were the same in the two places, there would be 1463 arsons in Chicago; that means that the arson rate is 114% higher in the USVI than in Chicago

FELONY AGGRAVATED ASSAULT

577 in the USVI; 6719 in Chicago

If the crime rates were the same in the two places, there would be 15,348 assaults in Chicago; that means that the felony assault rate is 44% higher in the USVI than in Chicago.

It's not a blame the victim mentality. If I were police commissioner, I would say, "I want to advise visitors that our islands are a beautiful place, but I can't stress enough that you should constantly monitor your surroundings and use caution when drinking, in an effort to prevent yourself from becoming a victim of a crime. As a result of this murder, we are utilizing all of our resources to apprehend this murderer and prosecute he/she to the fullest extent of the law."

Blame belongs to the murderer, but we all can't just sit back and act like our day to day decisions shouldn't matter, because they do. We need to take an active role in crime prevention, for ourselves, in the decisions we make day to day, because you cannot predict the behavior of ANYONE you really don't know. Unfortunately, life doesn't work like this, we just can't sit back all the time without a care in the world.

If I was walking down the street from the gas station at the fork in the road, towards the ferry dock, and someone exited the Front Yard and killed me without prior contact, that's one thing.

This wasn't the case. Sadly, a lack of judgment played a role in this tragedy. I hate to break it to everyone, but there will always be crime and people capable of murder at any given time down there, no matter what law enforcement does. People need to take steps to stop for a second and evaluate where they are, even in paradise.

Since this is a popular news story, the result will probably be to patrol the Cruz Bay area more proactively and provide a lot of police presence, possibly pushing some of the local residents to local areas adjacent to Coral Bay, for example.

Then, at that time, just like many other places, the few murders that occur will get less attention, because the victims will be far removed from the mind of a tourist coming from a middle or upper class neighborhood. Once everyone is moved, murder will be free to take place somewhere else, even though it is rare on St John.

It will then be easier for people to provide all the intellectual reasons why violent crime occurs in a poor area, and how to feel sorry for them, but they are the victims of other forces. As long as I can buy Cruz Bay Grill Grub and do happy hour at Woody's, I'm fine. Once it occurs in a more affluent or tourist area, it's then a priority, as I see by current events.

All sides of the issue need to be addressed.........more proactive law enforcement, along with the fact visitors and tourists need to take an active role in understanding you can't just vacation somewhere for a few weeks, and expect everyone to understand we are on vacation and don't bother us while we enjoy ourselves. It takes effort on both sides

Who was it who said, lies, damn lies and statistics? Reported crime data must be presented as rates per unit of population to enable comparisons among different sized cities, but if the population is inaccurately counted or crimes not reported (or consistently categorized city to city), crime rates will be skewed.
This one ranks up there with those who claim that the violence and death rate in some cities is higher than Iraq!

Bluwater,

As a Philadelphia Police Officer for over 11 years, I can tell you that the argument about prison space is an old liberal argument that has worked. The problem is, the politicians and residents who control this city will tell you it's not about more prisons, it's about finding people jobs and educating them. The mantra up here is, we can't arrest our way out of this problem............any Philly cop with pride will tell you with more resources (concerned community and more police), you can.

When I was there, I was going to court everyday, literally, so I am well aware of Philadelphia's problems.

The liberals will tell you, Why build more prisons when we have high unemployment and drop out rates, along with murder, in high crime areas. They'll attack everything but crime and punishment first. It's the lack of commitment to fight crime in this city, nothing more and nothing less. If the residents of high crime areas were that conernced about how crime affects their communities, they would be pressing for prisons to be built up and down the Delaware river, next to CFCF. They are not concerned, so the politicians aren't either (AKA, Street). And the stop and snitch attitude is perpetuated in high crime areas, leaving the DA's officer with their hands tied.

FYI,

I agree that your points on the numbers are correct. However, I stand by the fact that when it's not a tourist killed, it's just part of what occurs in the islands. We know where to be, and they know where to be, is what seemed to prevail in the past, and everyone enjoyed themselves.

I'll clarify. I should of said rare among tourists, to keep the murder rate in perspective. If the rate is high for non-tourists, tell me about it while I'm sitting on the beach drinking a pain killer. Of course I'm not serious, just trying to keep things in perspective.

You were talking about something different earlier - to which I responded. You were talking about the % of crimes brought to conviction in the county vs. the city - not the reason for the criminal activity. I was responding to why Philly isn't solving as many minor crimes. Noting to do with education and liberal views. Warrants and arrests move through the DA's Charging Unit for approval. Some of the charges stick, many don't - especially on minor offenses.

The issue of people being up in arms over tourists vs. local homicide is well taken. I agree 100%. I wonder why this forum isn't actively debating the June 15,07 events from St Thomas. How many murders took place that day, across the island? How many have been solved - or had arrests made? I said the same thing in 05 with the NYC visitors who were gunned down in Frenchtown for no apparent reason. They were black and hispanic....little stink was made. Do we know if that one was solved?

I'm close to them all - but especially this one since he was from my immediate home area and is my own son's age.

I thought interesting reading

http://www.arawak.net/pages/caribbean.safety1.html

I agree with your last post totally.

Wasn't there a murder in the Best Western near the airport a couple of years ago, involving a performer on a cruise ship or something like that? I didn't hear much about that, and I think that deserves attention, along with every other murder, regardless of how they could of been prevented, whether by the police or the victim, or a combination of both.

I guess I'm just very passionate about the Virgin Islands. I see the inconsistency in how the Front Yard homicide is covered, compared to the others. It's like all of the sudden everything is so bad down there, and there is a lot of media attention in the Philadelphia/South Jersy market, and it's not so beneficial for the Virgin Islands.

The VI reputation has to be protected, because nothing is different today than before this incident occurred. I just think some of us have to really to a look at every angle.

People that were never there might think twice now, and when I recommend it to someone in the future, I don't want them looking at me like it's a free for all war zone. I just want people to understand that if you use common sense down there and stop blaming the conditions, you will have far better freedom to travel the islands, especially St John, and enjoy yourself than you could possibly imagine -- far greater variety of things to do and see than other islands, without feeling you are threatened by crime. Because anyone who really looks at themselves in the mirror and uses common sense down there, knows it's a beautiful place to enjoy and visit.