The Bermuda Police Service will soon be able to measure the impact, rather than sheer numbers, of particular crimes committed on the island.

Darrin Simons, the Commissioner of Police, said existing statistics measure the amount of total crimes instead of how harmful they are.

He explained: “If you count a murder as the same as a minor assault, it’s one and one; it doesn’t really convey how much harm is being done.

“From a statistical reporting perspective, we want to introduce information around the amount of harm that’s being done; we call that the harm index.”

Mr Simons said the index could be introduced within the next year and that the BPS should have about 420 officers by the second quarter of 2026.

He spoke during the third town hall on gun and gang violence at Dalton E. Tucker Primary School tonight.

Andrew Murdoch, the Governor, and Michael Weeks, the Minister of National Security, also spoke during the meeting, which came a day before a month-long amnesty for prohibited weapons is set to launch.

The amnesty, due to run until December 17, allows people to turn in any listed prohibited weapon, including spiked wristbands and folding knives with a blade wider than 3in, into six designated bins throughout the island without being prosecuted.

Mr Simons added: “What has been asked at other town hall meetings is, ‘What if those weapons were used previously in the commission of a crime?’

“The reality is those crimes are still going to be investigated, and if we have sufficient evidence, individuals would be prosecuted for the crimes that arise out of the criminal use of those items.”

He highlighted that while gun and gang violence in other Caribbean nations is sometimes committed by foreign migrants, Bermudians are responsible for almost all gang-related crime in Bermuda.

He explained: “That’s on the one hand very sad, but on another hand there’s an opportunity that not other places have.

“These are our own, these are our sons, so if any place had the opportunity to do things different and have a different outcome, it is us.”

Mr Simons said “respect, revenge and revenue” drives much of the violence in Bermuda.

Several members of the public posed questions and thoughts after Mr Simons’s presentation.

Kenneth Simmons, the owner of Legends Bar, said he was at the Sandys business when Jasmin Smith and Shaquan Williams were fatally shot, and three others injured, inside the premises on May 1.

He said: “These are situations where young men are making choices, whether it be influenced by social media or drill rap … sometimes people are not as unified or together as you would think they are.”

Mr Simmons warned that police officers or children could get killed if Bermuda does not address gang violence.

He said: “We have to put something in place that’s going to storm this mindset, shake them up where a guy can say, ‘I’m not getting involved in this type of lifestyle; I don’t need this here’.”

Leroy Bean, Progressive Labour Party MP and leader of the Gang Violence Reduction Team, spoke about tackling the roots of the issue, such as generational trauma.

He explained: “When we look at certain people that are involved, many times we want to be seen from the outside, but when we don’t address that root cause, no matter who you lock up, no matter what prison you send them to, it will repeat itself.”

Dr Bean added: “If we’re going to start to see something happen in Bermuda, we’re going to have to form a concept that everyone can benefit from.”