Dear Friend and Virgin Islander,
I’m Attorney Russell Pate. As an attorney, I fight every day for good, regular, hard-working people like you. I believe that a senator’s No. 1 job is being a good steward for future generations.
We must protect our islands, beaches, and culture while creating a more effective and accountable government. Our government should serve all Virgin Islanders — not just the elite and their special interests — but all ah we. Make sure to vote! Virgin Islanders risked their lives for equal rights to vote: Princess Breffu, General Buddhoe, the Four Queens, Queen Coziah — they fought for freedom, justice, dignity and equal rights. Your vote continues their fight for justice and fairness.
For voters and those running for office in 2026, I have some thoughts on reform. For most of the issues below, I have already drafted legislation.
- Safe Communities
- Justice Reform
- Quality of Life
- Economic Opportunity
- Empowerment for All ah We
Safe Communities
a. Murders: Mainland states have fewer than 10 murders per 100,000 people, yet the USVI has 30 to 60 murders every year. Fear of murder of our children is on every parent’s mind, and it contributes to brain drain of our youth. Many of our promising Virgin Islanders leave the territory by high school. During the coronavirus pandemic the governor issued Emergency COVID Orders. The Senate should request the governor issue an Emergency Crime Order that will allow us to stop these outlaws killing our children. When criminals see consequences, violence will stop. Also, to double-down on violent crime; we ask the Feds to help prosecute more murders in the federal courts.
b. Gun Licenses: We have the strictest gun laws under the U.S. Flag, yet the highest murder rate per capita. Even the U.S. government is suing the USVI for unconstitutional overly-strict gun laws. After 40 years, we need to try something new. The criminal element has illegal firearms; while law-abiding citizens have a confusing and expensive firearm permit process. Our firearm licensing system evolved because U.S. Navy officers (who ran the V.I. from 1917-1931) believed in Jim Crow laws and did not want “colored” citizens to be armed for self-defense. Forty-three states have simple, straightforward gun licensing rules for law-abiding citizens. The Senate should just adopt the moderate rules of a small state, like Vermont or Maine.
c. Traffic Enforcement: We live on an island. We should have no deaths from traffic accidents. It’s innocent families who suffer when reckless or drunk drivers put every law-abiding driver at risk. It’s 5% of reckless drivers causing 90% of the accidents by overtaking, speeding, or driving while drunk or high. No family should suffer injury to their precious child, spouse, or grandparent because of a reckless driver. The Senate should work with Government House to bolster traffic law enforcement, along with making some key law changes, such as:
Dash-Camera Law: Dash-cam footage of reckless driving can be sent to the police department, so tickets can be assessed as a lien on the recklessly driven car. Community policing will make everyone safer.
Over-Service of Alcohol Law: 47 states out of 50 States and Washington, D.C., have laws against the over-service of alcohol; if a bar or restaurant has patrons highly intoxicated and sends them out to drive, and they kill, paralyze or harm an innocent motorist, the innocent person has a claim for reckless over-service; but not the drunk. The Virgin Islands has no law protecting innocent motorists (and innocent children) in this regard. You and your family members are on your own. In my legal practice, I have seen families bankrupted because they were hit by a drunk driver who carried only $10,000 in car insurance, while the surgeries and rehabilitation for a broken leg, arm, or brain injury were over $150,000. This loophole can be fixed by adopting the legal protections of one of 47 states or Washington, D.C., that protect their innocent citizens.
Insurance Coverage Law: When you’re hit by a reckless driver who then leaves the USVI to go back home (wherever in the world that may be), sometimes the insurance company will say “since you cannot find and sue the driver” you get no insurance coverage. This is unfair: We are islands with visiting tourists from around the world. We also drive on the left side, confusing unfamiliar drivers, contributing to our higher accident rates. A direct-action law allows innocent motorists to access the insurance that has been bought and paid for to cover their injuries, instead of insurance companies playing games. Guam, the North Marianna Islands, Puerto Rico, and many states have direct-action laws to protect their residents. I have a draft bill based on Guam’s law that will protect you and your family.
Justice System Reform
a. Court Delay: Justice delayed is justice denied. Just like an island-wide WAPA power outage, court delay affects every person. Businesses cannot quickly enforce contracts; people negligently injured do not have money for rehabilitation or surgery; parents die and children do not get their timely inheritance. The majority of the state trial courts clear 95% of criminal trials in less than 1.5 years and civil trials in less than 2 years.
b. Specialization: Efficiency comes from specialization. Each island has four trial judges, so I believe that each should specialize: Two judges can handle criminal cases, and the other two handle civil cases. Also, magistrates should be converted to full judges so they can handle all disputes, instead of being pigeon-holed.
c. Court Modernization: Our local courts do not follow the modern practices of the 50 states. Most state trial courts hold monthly motion hearings and rule from bench on the transcript record instead of writing lengthy published opinions.
d. Court Interest: The Virgin Islands had a 9% post-judgment interest rate, but it was reduced to 4% in 2000, yet most states have interest set at 9-13%. Justice delayed is a problem, but when interest is so low, those harmed are now double-harmed when their final payment is eroded by inflation and cost-of-living far outpacing the 4% interest rate. The 9% rate should be restored.
e. Witness Fees and Juror Pay: Juror pay and witness fees are tied to a 1957 law of $4 a day. I drafted Bill 35-0121 to raise juror pay and witness fees to modern values. That Bill passed Committee, but the whole Senate never voted on this simple modernization measure. The Senate should fix this so jurors are paid in 2026 dollars, not 1957 dollars.
f. Delay and Death: There are some cases pending in court for 10, 20, or even 30 years. We are human. People die. The USVI has a unique and bizarre substitution statute for death, 5 V.I.C. § 78, which unfortunately can disqualify people who patiently waited but died before court resolution. The Statute should be amended to follow the federal substitution rule that is used by all the federal courts and most states. Or the Statute deleted, so the court adopted the federal rule.
g. Statute of Limitations: When a person is hurt wrongfully, he or she has two years to sue. However, many injured people must travel off-island for medical care and may not return within the two-year window. Most states have three years (or more) as their limitation period, even though those states have adequate medical care right at home. It would be more fair if the USVI moves to three years to ensure that our residents are taken care of medically and financially.
h. Bad Faith Insurance Law: In all 50 states, when there is a disaster, be it a fire, earthquake, hurricane, or car accident, there’s a clear law, called a “Bad-Faith Insurance Law,” that makes sure the insurance company is protecting the best-interests of the insured. Unfortunately, the USVI has no Bad-Faith Insurance Law Statute. Thankfully, Judge Almeric Christian wrote clear case law in 1981 setting a common law Bad-Faith Standard. Still, having the Senate codify Judge Almeric Christian’s standard into Statute would make the law clearer, help encourage earlier amicable settlements and reduce delays in the courts.
i. Judges: Judges are initially nominated by the governor and confirmed by the Senate. However, after six years, judges are re-nominated by the governor. This keeps judges under the thumb of the governor, who directs the Department of Justice in handling every criminal prosecution and government civil lawsuit in court. Most states use a governor to initially nominate, but then use either their Legislature, a special committee, or retention-elections to decide judicial retention. Judges should be independent. The USVI should have the Senate handle retention, so that a judge’s track record, rather than relationship to a governor, can be assessed for re-nomination.
Quality of Life and Infrastructure
a. Beach Access: In 25 years Dorsch Beach in Frederiksted will be no more. Villas and condos will cover the beach, with fence lines right up to the road. Gone will be the days of parking near the beach, carrying food and chairs, and children running to the beach. The 1971 Open Beach Access Law is 55 years old. It must be updated to mandate that all roads near the beach have a 12-foot easement on either side for parking, so emergency vehicles can pass. All beachfront housing must have easement public parking and access walkways on the side of the property to the beach. If we don’t protect beach access, it will be lost to our children’s children.
b. Roads and Sidewalks: We live in Paradise. Every man, woman, and child should be able to walk across the island in safety. Sidewalks must be a priority. With sidewalks, locals and tourists alike can walk, jog, or run from Frederiksted Pier to Point Udall or on St. Thomas from Port to Paradise Point. Like other islands, we should use traffic circles. Traffic circles are hurricane-proof, with no stoplights to lose power or be knocked down by wind. Potholes are also a risk to road safety. We should utilize a brigade of good behavior inmates to assist in filling the many potholes around our islands that turn a simple commute into a nightmare.
c. Derelict Buildings and Historical Preservation: Derelict buildings foster crime, litter and ruin island pride. Historical areas like New Orleans have derelict building laws. A building that cannot be renovated to be productive rots away. The Historical Commission tends to focus on people who are actively trying to remodel old buildings, yet does nothing about the hundreds of structures falling into ruin. People attempting to improve old buildings should not be punished. The Historical Commission should be directed to focus only on abandoned derelict buildings.
d. WAPA and Solar Power: The Virgin Islands is in the tropics. The sun is our No. 1 resource. We should have the best laws encouraging solar power. After hurricanes Irma and Maria, the federal government promised $4 billion to WAPA. That is more than $40,000 for every man, woman, and child in the Virgin Islands. We should channel funding to solar panels for every home and business. No more WAPA bills. No more random outages. No more diesel needed for generators. Free solar energy to power homes and electric cars. No more buying gasoline. No more car exhaust. No more road smog; only pure Caribbean air.
e. Uber and Taxis: We live in the 21st century. The Taxicab Commission is a disaster. Tourists expect Uber and Lyft. Not having modern ride-share services is like the USVI not accepting credit cards. Further, people use these apps for safety, security, and peace-of-mind that their location and trip is being tracked. Further, modern taxi services cut down on drunk driving deaths and accidents. It’s time to deregulate and let more people enter into the transportation business. Young people should have the opportunity to open up a transportation business, or drive for Uber and Lyft, for the convenience of both locals and tourists.
f. Tourism: Tourism is best improved by focusing first on Virgin Islanders. Fix WAPA, fix the roads, have sidewalks, fix old buildings, stop the murders, have a working taxi system, in sum, take care of residents (and tourists will benefit too).
Economic Opportunity
a. Tax Refunds: Tax refunds are the people’s money, not a forced government loan. Perhaps we should consider that no salary shall be paid to the governor, lieutenant governor, commissioners, and senators, until yearly tax refunds are paid.
b. Get Government Out of Business: Government should never be in business. In a free, fair, and open democracy, businesses are the players, and the government is the referee. A referee makes sure the playing field is even and that no one is cheating. A referee should never step into the game and play. Business decisions by the Government of the Virgin Islands have been one disaster after another, and it is time to put an end to this chain of events.
c. One-Stop-Shop for Business: A business license requires the business owner to navigate the complex red-tape at DLCA, DPNR, Fire Services, BIR, Finance, Labor, Department of Health, and others. We need a One-Stop-Shop for business compliance. A One-Stop-Shop where people are greeted: “Good day taxpayer, how may I help you.”
d. EDC (Tax Credits): The USVI rolls out the red-carpet using tax credits for stateside millionaires, while our Virgin Islanders’ children are told to “do their best” in crumbling schools. Tax subsidies are used as a Band-Aid for larger problems. The USVI should be fair to all businesses, local and stateside, by removing red-tape regulations, making government offices more helpful, overhauling the gross receipts tax, and removing the need for “connections.” Once we have a fair system, no tax subsidies would be needed to draw foreign businesses to the USVI.
e. Teachers and Doctors: What is wealth, without health? If you are sick, how can you work and be productive? How can our children lead the USVI (and the world) if they are not properly educated in clean and healthy schools? You do not build a house from the top to the bottom. Tax credits for EDC/EDA focus on the top, when our children and our health are the real foundation of a productive society.
We need more teachers in our territory. And, our children deserve the best teachers. We should modify our tax laws so that local schoolteachers from pre-K to UVI only pay ½ tax to the BIR. This can encourage qualified teachers to remain in the territory. The foundation of every successful society is the education of its children.
All medical professionals (MDs, DOs and RNs) should be exempt from Gross Receipts, to encourage more health-care professionals to practice in the USVI.
The USVI has a dangerous law called Certificates of Need (CONs) that reduces health care. These CONs create needless hurdles for doctors to open up new hospitals, clinics, surgical centers, and to buy new modern equipment. We want the USVI to have the best doctors and most modern equipment so that the USVI can be a medical destination, instead of a medical desert. We should abolish CONs from the VI Code.
Empowering Virgin Islanders (this lion should roar!)
Virgin Islanders have always fought for their Human Rights: 1733 St. John slave rebellion, 1848 Emancipation, 1878 Fireburn, and 1892 Dollar-for-Dollar coal strike. The USVI was purchased in 1917. Waiting 109 years for equal treatment is too long. Don’t give up on the fight for equality.
a. End the Custom Zone: Puerto Rico is inside the Custom Zone, while we are outside. We should end the discriminatory Custom Zone; the indignity of going through Custom screenings at the airport (where your phone, tablet or laptop can be searched without a warrant or even reasonable suspicion) and being treated like second-class citizens. Also, end the frustrating and arbitrary duties on cargo shipments. Perhaps the best solution is to have it both ways: we keep two special ports for St. Thomas and St. Croix outside the Custom Zone, but allow the rest of the islands to be inside the Custom Zone; a win-win.
b. Elected Attorney General: We should change the laws to have elections for a Virgin Islands Attorney General who serves the people, not the governor. An elected Attorney General has independence to investigate local corruption. Also, for the nay-sayers, the Revised Organic Act doesn’t not bar this change. The A.G. should be elected in off-governor election years.
c. Numbered Senate Seats: Senators competing against each other in elections makes it harder for them to work together to create effective laws. A simple fix is “numbered seats” where each senate seat has an assigned permanent number. Then candidates can run for a specific seat number. Numbering seats is a better solution than sub-districting because it avoids partisan districting maps. Also, numbering reduces the “bullet vote.”
d. Our Own Constitution: The USVI has had five Constitutional Conventions. All failed (and cost millions). The Revised Organic Act (ROA) is already our Constitution. Just adopt the ROA and create a simple amendment process, like a super-majority vote in the Senate, so Virgin Islanders will finally be in local control of their rights and their destiny.
e. Military Draft: The USVI has one of the highest rates of military service, with heroes fighting for freedom abroad in WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, while freedoms and equal rights are denied at home. The Senate should draft a resolution for our young men NOT to be drafted, until we have the right to vote in Congress and for the U.S. President. The United States’ 250th birthday is in 2026; for that celebration, the best gift the United States can give itself is equality for ALL its citizens.
f. The VOTE in Washington: The Senate can change the election laws so we can vote for two Senators and a Representative in Congress. When we elect our three congressional representatives, we charter an airplane and fill it will military veterans (holding pictures of other veterans killed or injured in foreign wars) to escort our representatives to Congress to their rightful seats in the House and Senate.
g. European Union: For 109 years, the United States has treated Virgin Islanders as second-class citizens, refusing voting rights and equal rights to U.S. citizens in the USVI. We must stand up for ourselves. It’s possible the USVI could be traded to Denmark for Greenland, or sold outright. We should explore whether the European Union will allow the USVI to join their Parliament. This is an option of last resort. But if the USA says we will “never be equal,” or seeks to trade or sell the USVI, we should have a back-up plan.
— Russell Pate is an attorney on St. Croix.
Editor’s Note: Opinion articles do not represent the views of the Virgin Islands Source newsroom and are the sole expressed opinion of the writer. Submissions can be made to visource@gmail.com.
