After Deadly Weekend, Senator Gittens Renews Call for Increased Police Presence and VIPD Redeployment Plan

Following a weekend of deadly violence, Senator Kenneth Gittens is calling for immediate law enforcement redeployment, a new VIPD strategy, and greater community accountability, warning that current resource allocation leaves critical coverage gaps.

In response to a violent weekend that left three Virgin Islanders dead and three others wounded, Senator Kenneth Gittens is again urging immediate action to strengthen public safety across the territory. Gittens is specifically calling for a reallocation of law enforcement resources and the development of a formal redeployment strategy for the V.I. Police Department.

“The violence that erupted across our territory over the weekend is nothing short of tragic and unacceptable,” Gittens said. “Three lives lost, three others wounded, this level of bloodshed is simply mind-boggling. These are not just statistics; these are members of our community, our neighbors, our loved ones, our future.”

Gittens, who serves on the Committee on Homeland Security, Justice and Public Safety and a former law enforcement officer, said that law enforcement visibility should be heightened immediately—particularly as the territory prepares for upcoming festivities on St. John.

“I am calling on the Bryan-Roach Administration to take decisive action now by reassigning a majority of peace officers from other law enforcement agencies and positioning them within the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) for dedicated, community-based policing operations,” Gittens said.

He added that public safety must be seen as a shared responsibility. “Right now, I want to remind the community that public safety is a shared responsibility. While law enforcement remains committed to doing their part, members of the public must also do theirs — by respecting the law, policing their own behavior, and looking out for one another.”