The 2019 version of the proposed bill had attracted major concerns and public backlash — especially about sections 22 and 185 which together provided immunity for police officers acting under the authority of a warrant issued by a judge, magistrate, or Justice of the Peace.
But in the revised version of the legislation titled the Virgin Islands Police Act, 2023, government lawmakers added a caveat to Section 22 stating that officers would only be immune if they exercise “reasonable force in accordance with Section 190”.
Sections 190 and 191 of the revised bill goes on to state that a police officer may use force, if necessary, and “as is reasonable in the circumstances in the prevention of crime, or in effecting or in assisting in the lawful arrest of offenders or suspected offenders or of persons unlawfully at large”.