St Thomas strained

THE ST THOMAS police say the holding of circuit court in Kingston has been placing tremendous strain on its resources.

Superintendent Mervin McNab told The Gleaner yesterday that men and vehicles, which would have otherwise been carrying out patrols in the parish, have had to be deployed to transport prisoners to Kingston to stand trial in indictable matters.

St Thomas residents have been crying for authorities to address the imbalance on the justice scale since 2007 when the Morant Bay Courthouse was destroyed by fire.

Earlier this week, private counsel withdrew their service, saying it was too expensive for them and litigants to travel from St Thomas to Kingston. They also said it was unconstitutional for persons to be tried before Kingston juries as they are not made up of their peers.

However, following a meeting with Chief Justice Zaila McCalla, the lawyers have decided to call off their protest.

Attorney-at-law Earle DeLisser told The Gleaner yesterday that the resumption followed a fruitful meeting with McCalla.

"She has given her assurance that she will get the ministry to put something in writing as to what they intend to do and when they intend to start. Based on her assurance, in the interest of our clients, particu-larly those in custody, we are prepared to resume," DeLisser said.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice says it intends to build a temporary facility in the parish to house the courts.

The ministry said the facility would be ready in four months if approval is granted.