EDITORIAL - DPP must confront the crisis

There is none, of whom this newspaper is aware, who would question the legal acumen or courtroom skills of Paula Llewellyn, the head of Jamaica's prosecution services.

We are, however, increasingly sympathetic to those, domestic and abroad, who complain of an apparent lack of energy and organisational malaise at the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and Ms Llewellyn's efficacy as DPP.

A report in this newspaper a week ago, of a case in which Justice Carol Edwards offered bail to three men who were in custody for four years on murder charges, served to highlight prosecutorial inefficiencies that contribute to the huge backlog of cases in the Jamaican courts.

In this case, a key prosecution witness recanted from testifying, allegedly because of a threatening telephone call from one of the accused. The decision of the witness notwithstanding, the DPP declined to end the prosecution, preferring instead to use a section of the law that allows his statement to be tendered as evidence. It is now more than a year, and 11 trial dates and adjournments later, and the case still languishes.

Justice Edwards was concerned that enough had not been done to push the case forward, while defence attorney Lloyd McFarlane complained of the DPP's failure to "let go of cases that are not going anywhere".

We agree with Ms Llewellyn that in arriving at a decision, her office has to balance the public interest and act on the basis of credible information.

She is, however, not expected to dither. Which is often a complaint against the Office of the DPP, particularly in corruption or corruption-prevention matters.

Greg Christie, the contractor general, is, in this regard, a consistent critic of the DPP, in speeches and reports to Parliament, complaining of Ms Llewellyn's failure to test before the courts the "judicial efficiency" of his referrals for prosecution. That drought was broken late last year when Dirk Harrison spearheaded the prosecution of Patrick Wong, the former head of the National Works Agency, for his failure to comply with the Office of the Contractor General's request for information. Subsequently, a number of politicians were brought before magistrates for failure to file asset and liability reports with the Parliamentary Integrity Commission.

There is a broader perception, however, that the DPP lacks sufficient aggression in pursuing corruption cases. Such views would have been reinforced by the DPP's mishandling and delays in requesting information from Britain in the Mabey & Johnson case, in which the United Kingdom bridge-building firm pleaded guilty to bribing former Jamaican government technician and politician, Joseph Hibbert.

The incompetent management of the Hibbert issue weakens not only domestic confidence, but that of Jamaica's international partners, in the commitment, willingness and ability of our judicial and prosecutorial authorities to tackle corruption. Indeed, the recently released annual narcotics strategy report by the United States betrays such concerns.

Says that report: "The judicial branch remains ill-equipped to handle a large number of criminal cases, and prosecutorial efficacy is also lacking. As a result, there is a large number of government corruption cases awaiting prosecution, and convictions are few, as the cases may be put off for years without result.

It may be that Ms Llewellyn's office lacks the resources to do the job, in which case she must say so. Or, she may wish to exercise other options.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.