I guess on June19 a 21 yr old left a Cruz Bay bar(drunk) late at night after getting into it with a 2 locals and was beaten/stabbed/killed after he left. It took 6 wks and some pressure from the victim's family before the police finally made an arrest. And one of the attackers is still at large. This story will probably start getting bigger media coverage now that CNN and FOX have gotten ahold of it.

Let's not try to define St. John this way. Larry King didn't seem to even know that St. John is not a foreign country - but that aside, two arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing. The family feels that there was nothing happening until they pressured yet the police tell a very different story.
It is a very sad and horrible event no one should leap to conclusions until all the facts are clear to the public. It would not be fair to jeapordize the prosceution and justice for Jamie by overplaying this in the media and continuing to repeat speculation and rumors. And it certainly is not fair to all the good people of St. John who are appropriately more concerned, upset and saddend by the events than uninvolved people thousands of miles away.

Yes, and I was not happy because I'm leaving for St. John on Saturday morning.

However, not that I'm blaming the victim, but, he was drunk and apparently they were in a fight in the bar prior to the murder. Walking home in the dark in an unfamiliar place is always a bad idea. I think common sense is is order at home, and on vacation.

This is the second similar event on St. John this past year The other man, who also was drunk and walking alone was seriously beaten.

As a result I am rethinking my plans for evening dinning in Cruz Bay during my next trip.

I'd just say this to Dianebridles. The two St. John incidents both happened after midnight in an area of St. John that is far from restaurants and the places where tourists are likely to go. The two incidents happened in almost the same spot. Both incidents also included people who were drunk and, in the case of Mr. Cockayne, someone who picked a fight with a drug dealer in a bar we don't recommend you frequent.

Taxis are hard to come by in Cruz Bay after midnight, so if you want to go into town, you simply need to make arrangements to get back to your hotel. The typical tourist doesn't really have anything to fear from these incidents, so I don't think you should listen to sensationalism but rather use some common sense. Incidents involving non-impaired tourists are very rare in St. John, and it's among the safer places in the Caribbean.

I should really clarify my comment to be fair. The man who Mr. Cockayne is said to have picked a fight with is only suspected to be a drug dealer. That's not been proven.

Doug,
What bar was this at?

To Fodor's Editor:

Thanks for your input. I had beenlooking forward to lobster tail at Zozos Since I will staying at Caneel, I will ask their concierge to make the reservation and request that a return taxi be called.

The name of the bar is The Front Yard.

Doug,

Yes...I found the story online.We had a few drinks at the Front Yard on our last trip to STJ and I noticed alot of the teenage kids hanging out there.

Christie

Dianebridles: In my experience, taxis come by Zozo's pretty often, and there's usually one actually waiting there. If that turns out not to be the case, you could have one called from Zozo's. Basically, you may as well have Caneel make the reservation for you, but they may well tell you that a taxi doesn't need to be arranged in advance, and I think you should believe them.

I wouldn't be surprised to hear that the USVI police took a lot of prodding to investigate the crime that occurred. Law enforcement in the USVI seems to be pretty much nonexistent, and I've heard tales of incredible corruption among the USVI police.

However, unless you're planning on staying up very late and drinking in low-end bars,I really wouldn't worry about violent crime while visiting St. John. I've spent a lot of time there, and I never felt endangered in any way, except perhaps for the time when I went hiking on the beach at Brown Bay, which is in an extremely deserted area and is frequently used as a landing site for illegal alien smuggling operations.

I definitely would NOT go out walking around in Charlotte Amalie after dark, but in Cruz Bay, a little good sense should keep you safe and happy.

Diane,
I couldn't have said it better than hawksbill. No worries about serious crime. We walk all around Cruz Bay at night but I will say that most eateries stop serving around 9pm. As you know, it is not a late night kind of island.

No need to pre arrange the taxi for the return trip unless you want to. While they don't have one that hangs out at GP,getting one to pick you up there is not an issue.

IMO, and with all due respect to Doug Stallings, there is absolutely no indication that Jamie Cockayne picked a fight with anyone. In fact, his only mistake was that he might have thought he could peacefully socialize with a crowd so capable of violence. Even if the suspect(s) weren't drug dealers, they were not exactly decent citizens. Kill someone for kicking your girlfriend's car? Now that sounds like building a basis for an insanity defense. The entire incident was vicious, senseless and the probably the result of over-intoxification. Not only shouldn't tourists or decent people go anywhere near such places, it shouldn't even be allowed to exist. Perhaps the "Dram Shop Act" exists even in the far reaches of this American paradise. Let's not forget that this is a U.S. territory. Mr. A.G., are ya listenin'? Dianebridles: I do agree with Doug in that these violent incidents won't effect the average tourist. What it does remind us is that there's an ugly armpit to any society whether the community likes to admit it or not. Sorry to rant, but as many regular posters know, I am one of the biggest proponents of STJ, but this is one of the few incidents that makes my skin crawl and angry that the police and government continue to bumble in civic management. One of nature's greatest gifts and they are in danger of fouling it up.

In all due respects, Tuxedocat, so far three assailants have been arrested and no one should draw any conclusions based on media reports and speculation as to the cause or who is "decent" in this incident including the good folks who own the Front Yard. Indeed it was a senseless especially brutal murder but then so is any murder.
A deadly combination of factors that we may not even be aware of may be in play here - alcohol or other substances, youth, testostrone and history along with issues not spoken or not known between those involved. Speculation is not helpful.
The good hard-working decent people of the USVI are well aware of the problems and have been for years as are those in every other destination as it has been shown in studies that crime does escalate against tourists as tourism increases. We should be very aware no matter where we go to make our choices carefully when we are there. Even tho some travelers leave their good sense at the airport, they do not deserve to be a victim; however, as we know bad things happen to good people everywhere.
It would be wonderful if all crime could be solved in a CSI and Law and Order-like manner but it does take time and cooperation to see that the right people are arrested, tried and convicted. The people of the Virgin Islands want the same - not because of tourism but because it is their home.