Shooting victim Stephen Buckley’s first weekend with cash

Stephen Buckley

After more than three years of begging on the street to feed his family with no assistance from Government, Stephen Buckley received fifty thousand dollars on Friday. The money is part-payment of a compensation for injuries he received at the hands of a policeman in April 2010. According to Prime Minister Dean Barrow, Buckley will receive another payment of fifty thousand dollars by the end of this week. Today, News Five asked him about his first weekend with money in his pocket, and also about his plans for the future.

Stephen Buckley, Shot By Police in 2010

“Everywhere I turn man di ask mi fi wah lee help out. I tell dehn bwai I can’t help yo right now cause I need fi try take care of my family. So I noh want uu come harass me like that cause I noh got it like that. I need to take care of my family right now. I tell them I need to try get mi house. I wah try build mi house; that dah weh I explain to them…use the next fifty thousand fi build mi house.”

Reporter

“How yo spend yo first weekend weh yon oh have to the worry weh di next meal wah come from?”

Stephen Buckley

“Well I feel happy. So far I feel happy to Mister Barrow. I have to tell Mister Barrow thank yo fi weh yo do fi mi. At least yo got mi di got mi di eat and I don’t have to go beg nobody. Thank yo again.”

Reporter

“What was the reaction from your wife? We gone there Friday and she wasn’t there. What was her reaction when ih come home and find out that you actually get some money?”

Stephen Buckley

“Well she feel kinda happy. She feel happy when she see that I got money and think weh we could cook up and thing and we could be better. She feel happy for it. Ih say you know how long that take babe. Now we di get something at least. So that dah weh I di say right there. I wah tell she thanks babes because you deh deh fi me. So I just want tell ahn thanks.”

Reporter

“Just tell me a little more about the house. You sound like you got big plans and you want to get out of that area…you di head up the road.”

Stephen Buckley

“I gone dah Hattieville gone check pan mi land, but I have to wait until the man weh got the land paper to show me the land.”

Reporter

“And then when you get that extra lee money, then yo gone from there?”

Stephen Buckley

“I gone from dehn, goh build mi house and live wah lee better.”

At a later date, Buckley will also receive a large lump sum which will be worked out by his attorney and attorneys for the Police Department. That sum will reflect compensation for his loss of revenue since the shooting and for the rest of his working life since he was incapacitated by the shooting.