Anthony Harriott (PhD) is a Professor of Political Sociology, and Director of the Institute of Criminal Justice and Security at the University of the West Indies.
He is the recipient of various academic awards including the Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research and Public Service. He is the author of over forty scholarly articles, author/editor eight books over thirty technical reports, primarily on the issues of violence, gangs and policing in Caribbean societies. The books include: Police and Crime Control in Jamaica: Problems of Reforming Ex-colonial Constabularies (2000), Organized Crime and Politics in Jamaica: Breaking the Nexus (2008) and Gangs in the Caribbean – The Response of Sate and Society -with Charles Katz (published in 2014). Professor Harriott was the Lead Author of the first regional Human Development Report on the Caribbean. This seven country study on Citizen Security in the region (including St. Lucia) involved a team of some ten researchers from six universities.
Professor Harriott is a member of a number of international professional organizations including the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) and the American Society of Criminology (ASC), and has presented a number of scholarly papers at the meetings of these organizations. He has served as a member of the International Scientific and Professional Advisory Council of the United Nations Crime and Criminal Justice Programme. He initiated and co-led a project which assessed crime reduction projects in the Caribbean and Southern Africa.
At the regional level, he has served as a member of the CARICOM Regional Task Force on Crime which was constituted by the CARICOM Heads of Government. He has worked on crime reduction or police reform projects in most Caribbean countries – including the effort to build a new police serivice in Haiti.
At the national level, he served as a member of the Commission of Inquiry into Events which occurred in West Kingston and Related Areas 2010, that is, the evens related to the extradition of Christopher Coke the then leader of the Shower Posse. The joint military and police operation resulted in 72 deaths. He currently serves as a member of the Police (Civilian) Oversight Authority (PCOA), The Police Service Commision and The National Commission on Violence Prevention.
At the national level, he served as a member of the Commission of Inquiry into Events which occurred in West Kingston and Related Areas 2010, that is, the evens related to the extradition of Christopher Coke the then leader of the Shower Posse. The joint military and police operation resulted in 72 deaths. The main thrust of the work of this commission was to inquiire into the conduct of the security forces during the operation and to account for the killings. He is also a member fot the National Commission on Violence Prevention.
Professor Harriott has had and enduring interest in police and security sector transformation. His levels of engagement with police transformation have been: as an academic researcher; and, as a government appointed member of various commissions and boards which have been charged with developing and monitoring transformation plans. He currently serves as a member of the Police (Civilian) Oversight Authority (PCOA) and the Police Service Commision. The former is designed to ensure that the everyday conduct of the JCF adheres to the policies of the GOJ and that its conduct is consistent with its standards, rules and regulations and, the latter is responsible for appointments, the promotions of senior officers and disciplinary matters.