Once again, we have had a relatively quick solution, if one can term the death of a suspect a 'solution', to a high-profile crime.

As The STARreported on Saturday, Kayon Bryan, a suspect in the murder of Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) chairman, Douglas Chambers, was shot and killed by the security forces near Spanish Town on Friday night.

It is a pattern with which we are now familiar; in recent times, it happened with the murder of two policemen in Trench Town. There is a killing which shocks even a nation used to murder and mayhem and, a few days later, a suspect or suspects bite the dust in a hail of bullets.

It would seem to us, though, that while this quick 'solution' is no doubt satisfactory to those burning for revenge and others who do not care much for matters of evidence, it is itself indicative of deeper weaknesses. For one, it is not all killings which get this quick 'solution', which would seem to indicate that more effort is put into addressing some more than others.

In addition, it does not appear that it is stemming the tide of violence at all, as the figures keep rising. Neither does it prove any level of guilt and is no substitute for a creaking justice system.

It would appear clear that a justice system which actually works is the best solution to our dreadful crime problem. For while these quick 'solutions' provide some sort of closure for a few, the rest of the nation is left wide open to the mercies of those who would do them harm.