For­mer pres­i­dent An­tho­ny Car­mona says par­ents must ex­am­ine their role in shap­ing chil­dren who be­come in­volved in se­ri­ous crimes, warn­ing that when a child is con­vict­ed of of­fences such as mur­der, rape or vi­o­lence, the fail­ure of­ten be­gins long be­fore that child en­ters the crim­i­nal jus­tice sys­tem.

Draw­ing on his years as a High Court judge, Car­mona said such out­comes rep­re­sent a fail­ure of parental guid­ance and men­tor­ship, urg­ing fa­thers and men­tors to recog­nise their re­spon­si­bil­i­ty in in­flu­enc­ing chil­dren’s val­ues, dis­ci­pline and be­hav­iour.

Speak­ing at a Fa­ther’s Re­treat host­ed by San Fer­nan­do West MP and Ed­u­ca­tion Min­is­ter Dr Michael Dowlath at the Petrotrin Staff Club in Pointe-a-Pierre on Mon­day, Car­mona said the coun­try’s crime cri­sis can­not be solved through polic­ing and pros­e­cu­tion alone.