Jamaica: Justice system going to the dogs ("almost in shambles")

Justice system going to the dogs
published: Tuesday | April 24, 2007

Residents protesting outside the Mandeville Courthouse in Manchester last year. - Norman Grindley/Deputy Chief Photographer

Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter

JAMAICA'S JUSTICE system is deteriorating fast; indeed, some would say it's almost in a shambles. Problems prevail from the Resident Magistrates' Courts to the Circuit Courts, from the Gun Court to the Coroner's Court, to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, from the jury service to essential support services.

The system is being hamstrung by backlogs, staff shortages, the lack of up-to-date equipment and technologies and basic resources, and there is now the need for out-of-the-box thinking to bring its operation into the 21st century and earn it the confidence of the Jamaican people.

At this, albeit the 11th hour, the Government is taking steps to rescue it by way of comprehensive reform. The process began in September 2006 and is projected to reach a critical stage in June 2007 when a modernisation plan to transform the system will be decided on, based on recommendations from a 28-member Jamaican Justice Reform Task Force, assisted by a Canadian advisory committee of justice reform experts.

The next step will be the implementation, or to be more accurate, summoning up the political courage and providing the wherewithal to get the job done, by translating the recommendations into tangible actions and changes which will benefit the nation as a whole, especially the poorer citizens, many of whom now see justice as a stream flowing past them and out of their reach.

A massive backlog of cases in courts islandwide and its twin problem, inordinate delays in getting criminal and civil cases tried "within a reasonable time", have been dragging the justice system down these last several years, but not much has been done to seriously tackle the problems.

This has resulted in some accused persons in criminal cases languishing in jail for up to three years, in some instances, and complainants, witnesses and jurors having to attend court time after time without the trials seeming to inch one step closer. And all too often, complainants and witnesses become frustrated to the point of refusing to return to court. In extreme cases, especially at the preliminary inquiry stage at the Resident Magistrate's Court, it's not unusual for witnesses in gun murder cases to give depositions, only to be murdered even before the case is sent for trial in the Home Circuit Division of the Gun Court. And there are cases in which witnesses are killed even before the preliminary inquiries begin.

This is important information to bear in mind when planning a vacation or business trip. Being victimized by crime while in a foreign land is bad enough, but being unable to rely on the local justice system should make any thoughtful person carefully consider whether going to that country is a good idea in the first place.