GPF ranks trained on crime scene measurements, use of speed guns, breathalysers
Ranks of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) have been undergoing training on the verification and use of breathalysers and speed guns and use of the International System of Units, in order to build their competency and guarantee the integrity of data presented in court.
On Friday, a second batch of ranks benefited from the training, which is being carried out by the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS).
According to a GNBS release, the entity will continue to offer similar capacity building training sessions over the next few months, with each rank receiving a certificate upon completion.
The release said that Head of the Legal Metrology Department, Jermaine Softley, noted that the use of verified instruments, administered by trained and certified personnel, will make the public more confident that the results indicated on the instruments are reliable. Furthermore, he noted that the GNBS is building its
capacity to verify breathalysers and speed guns used by the GPF.
As such, the ranks were trained by Senior Inspector of the GNBS, Alwin Etwah, on the functionalities of Radars and Lidars (two types of speed guns), their features, and the frequencies of its internal and external calibrations.
The release further stated that Keemo Fyffe, Senior Inspector of the GNBS, who trained the ranks on the use and calibration of breathalysers, emphasised the importance of the Force having the instruments calibrated once monthly.
Additionally, the release said, the ranks were trained on use of the International System of Units and were encouraged to use grammes and kilogrammes in their reports of drug cases and centimetres and metres while taking measurements at accident and crime scenes.
The intention is to build the competency of the GPF, so that data collected during investigations “can withstand scrutiny in the Court of Law”, the release stated.