In what could be a more head on approach to tackling gun violence the police anti-gun and anti-gang units were on patrol in key trouble spots in the city last night just around the time that the announcement was being made that  responsibility for the police force had been shifted from the minister of home affairs Edmund Hinkson to the Office of the Attorney General Dale Marshall.

Mr. Marshall is expected to hold a news briefing sometime tomorrow and also may be accompanying top officers of the force on a tour of some of the reputed hot spots after which he is expected to address the news media.

Mr. Marshall now has responsibility for the Police Administration and Preservation of Public Order, the Forensic Services Centre, the Criminal Justice Research Unit and the Police Complaints Authority.

That still leaves Mr. Hinkson with responsibility for the Immigration Department, the Prison Service, the Fire Department, the Postal Service, the Department of Emergency Management, the National Council on Substance Abuse and Marriage Licences.

Mr. Hinkson tells Starcom Network News he’s comfortable with the shift and believes that still leaves him with a lot of work to do.

Meantime, several members of the public have voiced support for the move, though at least one had the view that the home affairs minister had a tough job and would have needed time to get things done.