Justice Minister rejects call for speedy trial legislation

 

Minister of Justice Delroy Chuck has rejected calls for the implementation of speedy trial legislation to prevent inordinate delays and ensure accountability in the justice system.

 

Last month, attorney and Chairman for Jamaicans for Justice, John Clarke, made the call following a feature aired during the discussion segment of Radio Jamaica's Beyond the Headlines. 

 

The feature captured the story of a mother whose children perished in a fire 20 years ago and the eventual freeing of two men who had been arrested and charged in 2004 for the murder of the children.

 

Mr. Clarke said the case warrants a re-examination of the justice system with a view to finding solutions to preventing reasonable delays.

 

But speaking Wednesday at the inaugural Judiciary Day, Minister Chuck declared that the proposal is not up for consideration and that the government will continue to use moral suasion.  

 

"...We use moral suasion to ask all the stakeholders, the lawyers in particular themselves, the input from the Ministry of Justice, and from the DPP to ensure that we can in fact complete cases within a reasonable time, especially criminal cases. Because once the offender is there over an extended period, as pointed out in that case from St. Mary, the stakeholders, especially the family members, start to complain and start to lose interest and feel that justice has not been done. So it's very important that we really ensure that cases are completed," he reasoned. 

 

Noting that the economy is strong, Mr. Chuck said it can only get stronger with swift turnaround time in the courts.

 

"With $50 billion worth of assets is tied up, or $5 billion of cash is tied up in the bank, because disputes are not resolved, then it slows or it has an impact on how well the economy can grow. And I have no doubt that in the civil cases in the Supreme Court, hundreds of billions of dollars are actually tied up and are not being utilised effectively in the system, because litigants are waiting for a judgment," he suggested.

 

Mr. Chuck said he is hoping that in the next year or two, there will be significant progress in relation to the completion of cases before the courts.

 

Noting that some divorce and appropriate cases have been completed within six weeks, Minister Chuck said swift turnaround time can be achieved if attorneys play their part in filing the correct documents.