Jamaica gang trial tests new anti-crime laws amid wave of violence

A woman watches as alleged gang members step out of a police truck after arriving at court, in Kingston, Jamaica January 28, 2022. REUTERS/Stringer

KINGSTON (Reuters) - A trial of dozens of alleged gang members in Jamaica is testing recent judicial reforms designed to fight the island's powerful criminal groups, widely blamed for the Caribbean nation having one of the world's highest murder rates.

Jamaica's Supreme Court is trying the 33 defendants on charges including arson, murder and being part of a criminal organization. The offenses were allegedly committed between 2015 and 2019 on the western outskirts of the capital Kingston.