“A lot is expected of you” – Chief Justice to Crime Chief on admission to Bar

…vows to use legal knowledge to enhance support for GPF’s successful prosecutions

Despite a series of challenges, Deputy Commissioner of Police – Law Enforcement, and Crime Chief, Wendell Blanhum, has achieved a childhood dream of becoming an attorney-at-law, and now he plans to use his legal knowledge to bolster the Guyana Police Force’s chances of securing successful prosecutions in the courts.

Blanhum, who, along with three other senior cops, recently graduated from the Hugh Wooding Law School in Trinidad and Tobago with his Legal Education Certificate (LEC), has been admitted to the Guyana Bar on Wednesday.
His petition was presented by his wife, Attorney Latchmie Rahamat, before Chief Justice (ag) Roxane George.
According to the Crime Chief, he is not only elated that he persevered to achieve a childhood dream of becoming a lawyer, but the occasion was made much more special as he was called to the Bar on the day his wife had also been called years ago.
The Head of the GPF’s Criminal Investigations Department (CID) said he intends to use his legal knowledge to strengthen the Police Force’s capability to support successful prosecutions in the judicial system.

“As Crime Chief, being an attorney-at-law, it’s going to benefit me tremendously in my work. As the Deputy Commissioner – Law Enforcement, one of my duties entails reviewing crime files, looking at the elements of defence to see whether the investigators were able to prove all the elements of defence before submitting the file to the Police Legal Advisor or to the Director of Public Prosecutions. So, this will definitely help in that regard,” he said.
“And over the years since I started law school, I was very quick to learn the principles of law, and based on my knowledge and skills during my training, I was able to impart that knowledge and skill (to) ranks, assist them in every way possible to ensure that we put forward a very good case to the court,” the Crime Chief posited.

Challenges
However, Blanhum outlined that getting to this point was not without challenges. He recalled being removed, in the midst of his law studies at the University of Guyana, as Crime Chief and sent to Region One (Barima-Waini) as a Sub-Divisional Officer, and later becoming the Divisional Commander.
In fact, prior to that re-assignment, Blahnum, who was appointed CID Head in 2015, was demoted to Deputy Commander of ‘A’ Division in 2017, following a controversial Commission of Inquiry into an alleged plot to assassinate former President David Granger.
Blanhum’s demotion was heavily criticized, since his stint as Crime Chief resulted in the reopening of many high-profile cases like the execution of fashion designer Trevor Rose, and the 1993 murder case of Monica Reece.
However, he was reappointed as Crime Chief back in 2020.
“To those individuals, I forgive them. I’m a gladiator, so to speak, I do not give up… Every crisis I try to look at the opportunity, and I always persevere. Being a Police officer is not for the faint at heart,” Blanhum said when asked about his demotion and relocation.
He went on to note that it was especially challenging to manage his law studies, which required a certain level of attendance in order to graduate, and being assigned to such a remote and distant location as Region One.
“I was absent from some of the classes, but I had some very good lecturers. They excused me from being absent from the classes, [and] I had some very good colleagues who assisted me with learning materials, and [I] was able to attend classes whenever I could. And also, I was able to write my examinations and I was very successful at the LLB level. As you’re quite aware, I graduated with a distinction.”
Another major challenge in his journey to becoming a lawyer was the May 2022 fire at the CID Headquarters, which occurred as he was studying and preparing for his Criminal Practice and Procedure exam.
“I received that distressing call that there was a fire there [at CID Headquarters], so I had to pack up my studying notes and visited the scene, make an assessment, report to my superior, and then head back to start my examination,” he explained.

Encouraged others
Despite these challenges, however, the Crime Chief used the opportunity to encourage other ranks in the Police Force to pursue higher academic goals, noting that perseverance is the key.
“I have always encouraged each and every one of my ranks to pursue their academic journey, and I want to let each and every one of them know that every journey will not be smooth, you will encounter some road bumps, but perseverance is the key. You need to persevere in order for you to succeed. And I’m the epitome of perseverance today,” he declared.

A lot is expected
In fact, Blanhum received similar advice from the Chief Justice as she congratulated him during his Bar Admission on Wednesday. While Justice George urged Blanhum to remain committed to excelling in his field, and lauded him for his handling of matters thus far as a Police officer, she declared that much more would be expected of him now as an attorney-at-law.
“You are not just an officer [of the GPF], but you are an officer of the courts… A lot is expected of you. I have no doubt that you will live up to the high expectations not only that you set yourself by your career so far, but that the profession will require of you. I expect that honesty, integrity, frankness with the court will be the hallmarks of all that you do… You now are in a leadership position, not just as Crime Chief, you are in a leadership position as Attorney-at-Law; therefore, the Courts will expect a very high standard from you and the officers and ranks that you lead, because we know that you have the training and we now know that you have the expertise,” Chief Justice George stressed.
Blanhum’s Admission to the Bar was witnessed by family, close friends, and colleagues, including Commissioner of Police Clifton Hicken and other senior GPF ranks, as well as Public Service Minister Sonia Parag and officials from the Attorney General’s Chambers.
Only Tuesday, Deputy Commissioner– Administration, Calvin Brutus, along with Assistant Superintendent Delon Fraser were called to the Bar. A fourth cop, Assistant Superintendent Dominick Bess, is also slated to be called to the bar sometime this week. (Vahnu Manikchand)