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To explain we have to go back to last week Wednesday when we told you about the news book called "Like Bush Fire." It's based on a comprehensive report made in 2010 that takes a look at male social participation and urban violence in Belize. The authors and publishers went on a media tour to promote their work. But in the process, ACP Williams took offence to some of the things that were said about the police department based on the report. Today he lashed out at the researchers calling them unprofessional and criticized this media house for having some sort of cynical interest in keeping the crime rate high.

ACP Chester Williams - OC. Eastern Division South
"I take offense to the fact that my officers are out there every day working their butts off to ensure the safety of people on southside Belize City and to reduce crime, to quell situation between gang and to see someone just come from nowhere and try to say, oh the police are doing foolishness, the police are a bunch of dumb people. I will tell them, the police the department is not what it once was, we have a number of highly educated people, who are as educated as they are and separate and apart from our level of education, we also have experience. I, for one have been doing this job for over 20 years and I have interviewed many killers, more than two hundred and I have dealt with them on a one on one basis as well for a number years and, while yes, I do respect the work of social scientist and researchers, I would ask them to don't sit and try to criticize those persons who are trying to make a difference. I would have expected that these eloquent researchers would have come and say, you know what, we did our research, these are the results of our research, these are what is causing the problem and these are the solutions that we would recommend that you put in place but, for them to go on every news media house in Belize and try to criticize the work that we do without even trying to provide some reasonable methods to be put in place to quell the situation. That is very unprofessional of them. I saw the thing on channel 7. I don't know if they think that Jules Vasquez has an interest for crime to reduce in Belize. That is what sells for Jules. Jules says it plain, if it bleeds it leads right?"

And while we are amused, for the record, we note that Channel 7's News Director Jules Vasquez never said, "If it bleeds, it leads." That's just an old expression that's been in circulation in the US media for decades.