Noel Thompson, Freelance Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:

Some members of the legal fraternity in Montego Bay, St. James, want Government to extend the retirement age of resident magistrates from 60 to 65 to ease the chronic shortage of RMs facing the justice system.

The call was made at the Jamaican Justice System Reform forum at the Civic Centre in Montego Bay last week.

Canute Brown, director of reform in the Ministry of Justice, said the comprehensive review process of reforming the justice system will result in some significant changes and improvement, and noted useful suggestions were made at the forum.

He said that, in the 1990s, the RM Act was amended to give the Justice Minister the power to determine the level of jurisdiction of an RM from time to time.

"No longer do we have to go to Parliament and pass a new law to increase the jurisdiction. I think, therefore, that the Bar Association should take the mechanism on board that should be used by the minister to determine the level of jurisdiction," Brown stated.

Burden on RM courts

"If they are going to increase the jurisdiction now, much burden will be placed on the RM courts and there are not sufficient resident magistrates to deal with all the cases before the courts," he said.

Brown cited that the National Task Force, headed by Professor Barry Chevannes, should consider giving powers to Justices of the Peace to preside over cases such as traffic offences and minor civil matters that do not involve questions of law, which he believes could significantly reduce the pressures on the RM courts.

Responding to concerns about the reinstatement of hanging, Mr. Brown said: "The public needs to be told more as to why hanging is not being carried out. It is not sufficient to raise the question and leave it unanswered."

Other concerns raised at the forum were that the court day needs to be extended to a full eight hours; the time it takes to file a case needs to be reduced; poor facilities and lack of proper facilities for the judiciaries, jurors, witnesses, police personnel, as well as the public need to be addressed; security needs to be stepped up inside the courts and the eliminating of preliminary enquiries, particularly when an accused person has pleaded guilty to an offence or crime.