Daren Stuart has been featured multiple times on this newscast, as a bus driver with interesting insights into the industry, or as a spokesperson for the Belize Bus Association. But, tonight, he's making the news because he says police at the Raccoon Street Police Station in Belize City are making it difficult for him to comply with the gun laws.
He's a licensed firearm holder, and he says that for about 2 weeks now, he's been trying unsuccessfully to renew his license.
You probably know that licensed gun holders have an obligation to keep their licenses up-to-date, and if they don't, they are at risk of being charged with keeping an unlicensed firearm - which is a remand-able offence. The most recent public case to hit the evening news on this issue was 6 weeks ago. That's when the cops charged attorney Arthur Saldivar for failing to renew his license within the required grace period.
Stuart says that the cops have been giving him unnecessary run-around to meet that deadline, and today, his frustration reached a peak. He called us to complain in front of the Police Station, about what he thinks is poor customer service. Here's how he vented to us this morning:
Daren Stuart - Licensed Gun Holder
"I came here on the 27th of April, a couple of days before my birthday to come and renew my gun license because I refuse to be one of those violators. When I came here, I was told that I needed to bring the firearm again for a second time. And I have a form that is filled out and issued by the police that shows that it is in the system. They [had] already done all the protocols that they required. They already got three cartridges. They fired 3 cartridges from the gun, kept it as a sample, all that. I complied and I brought the gun again a second time. When I came here, I was told that they don't have any book that the gun licenses are in. They have to get that from the Treasury. I was told to come for it at 10:30. I left my gun in the safekeeping of the police, and I went about my business, doing some other business, and I came back."
"When I got here I was told, 'We cannot get it until 1 o'clock. So, I told them that I don't have the time to stay here. I need to move on. Given the fact that we have 1 month grace period to license my firearm, I asked for my firearm, which was given to me, and they gave me this paper that was already filled out by their firearms clerk."
"All I am trying to do is license my gun. All I am trying to do is what is required by law for me to license my firearm. And they are refusing. Now, when I went back there, they started - people who came long after me, the cashier attend to them. When I went up to the cashier, I was blankly told by 2 of the female personnel there that because of the way I approached them this morning, they won't attend to me. So, why can't I get service? All I am asking to do is to deal with my firearm license. That's all I am asking for, but they won't attend to me."
Police have since shared their complaints against Stuart. They say that during his visits to the station, he has been impatient and abrasive with the officers and staff connected to the gun license renewal process. They say that they are trying to accommodate all members of the public for their required services and that civilians need to have patience when it comes to the wait time.
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