Dr Lutchman: Enforcing rules is not ‘uncaring’—T&T must undo ‘lawless’ mindset

“[Critics] suggest that a caring state relies on education, while a punitive state relies on force. This binary view, however, obscures the reality of how safety and civil order are actually maintained.

“[…] The assertion of law is not an abdication of care. On the contrary, it is often the only mechanism that ensures care can be delivered to individuals whilst serving societal expectations…”

The following Letter to the Editor, which rebuts the suggestion that a steep increase in fines would alienate citizens without making Trinidad and Tobago safer, was submitted to Wired868 by Dr Russell Lutchman, consultant forensic psychiatrist, Birmingham, UK:

The Prime Minister’s recent characterisation of the country as a “lawless dump”, followed by a broad crackdown on disorder, has sharpened the debate surrounding the increase in traffic fines.

While the strict language and the doubling of penalties signal a government intent on reasserting control (and rightly so), critics argue that such measures equate to humiliation rather than valid policy.

They suggest that a caring state relies on education, while a punitive state relies on force. This binary view, however, obscures the reality of how safety and civil order are actually maintained.

The argument that increased fines alone cannot fix a broken traffic system is sound. Structural reforms regarding road infrastructure and a culture of safety are undoubtedly necessary—no amount of financial penalty can compensate for absent road markings, confusing signage, or a lack of reliable public transport.

However, while correctly diagnosing the need for infrastructure and education, there is a risk of misdiagnosing the role of law itself. The necessity of enforcement cannot be discarded in the process.

There is a growing tendency to treat “health and social care” and “law” as if they occupy separate moral universes—where care is modern and humane, and law is archaic and punitive. But this separation is artificial.

In practice, they are often deeply entangled. The assertion of law is not an abdication of care. On the contrary, it is often the only mechanism that ensures care can be delivered to individuals whilst serving societal expectations.

Within health and social care systems, the fields often cited as the model for non-punitive approaches, legal compulsion plays a critical role. Mental health legislation serves as a clear example. When voluntary compliance is insufficient to protect a patient or the public, the law steps in.

Detention, involuntary treatment, and restrictions on liberty are imposed. These measures are not taken to shame patients or because the system has “failed” to educate them. They are taken because the immediate risk of harm outweighs the ideal of autonomy.

Detention in a psychiatric hospital for the purposes of enforced treatment is not viewed as an act of state “humiliation”. It is recognised as a necessary safeguard when capacity or judgement is severely compromised.

Traffic law operates through a similar lens. Speed limits, breathalysers, and fines are not instruments of moral outrage designed to humiliate drivers. They are tools of risk management designed to contain behaviour that endangers life.

A car, like a mental health crisis, carries a probability of lethal harm. When safety is ignored whether through the entitled attitudes or simple negligence, compliance is compelled. The cost of waiting for “education” to take effect is paid for in lives lost or serious injury.

To frame enforcement as merely “punitive” is to ignore its preventive function. Deterrence is not merely about fear—it is about creating a boundary that holds when individual judgement fails.

This principle extends to incarceration. For the convicted, imprisonment is not designed to deliver cruelty. Instead it is a structured instrument aiming for Retribution, Rehabilitation, and Restitution.

Similarly, the legal system utilises force to detain those on remand in specific circumstances; prioritising public safety over liberty even before guilt is established. In both instances, the force applied is functional, serving legal and societal ends rather than emotional ones.

Ultimately, a society that relies solely on force is a tyranny. A society that relies solely on persuasion, in the face of rampant disorder, is a hazard.

A society built on narco-terrorism believing it is untouchable eventually discovers that impunity is an illusion—one that shatters the moment it encounters a force far greater than itself.

PM Kamla Persad-Bissessar is right and guided by a properly functioning moral compass. Trinidad and Tobago had indeed become a lawless dump.

Those groomed into mindsets of lawlessness by previous poor governance face a rude awakening. The time for unchecked entitlement is over. They will now meet the full force of the law.

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