Questionable Conduct: The Jamaican Political Reality

The Jamaica Defence Force has a duty to the people of Jamaica to publicize the truth of its operations in Tivoli Gardens in May 2010.That inconvenient truth ought not to wait on the announced Commission of Enquiry to provide a forum for its promulgation . Since May 2013 the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) has stated categorically that the Interim Report tabled  by the Public Defender contained   "numerous unfortunate conclusions drawn on the basis of unsubstantiated allegations, misrepresentation and uninformed analyses"  The Gleaner, Monday, May 6, 2013 The JDF is a professional organisation that enjoys a special place within public confidence. It is duty-bound to maintain that position. It is imperative that  the JDF places its record in the public domain to, at the very least, provide an alternative to that posited by the public defender concerning its operations in the "Tivoli incursion/siege". Currently the public has only that Interim Report  detail...

A showdown looms between the Jamaica Defence Force(JDF) and the Public Defender. The battle lines are drawn. The Public Defender has tabled in Parliament its Interim Report on the "Tivoli incursion/siege". That has been the subject of discussions in the local and international media, the choice topic of social media and is available on the GOJ Parliament website. The JDF has not officially responded to the adverse findings contained in Witter's Report. Indeed Earl Witter had led the public to expect a Final Report. However he has since retired and the only question is whether or not he has "packed up taken his marbles with him". The JDF has thrown down the gauntlet and signaled in no uncertain terms the approach it intends to adopt during the Tivoli Commission of Enquiry: "The JDF, meanwhile, said that it welcomed the opportunity to respond to "numerous unfortunate conclusions drawn on the basis of unsubstantiated allegations, misrepresentation...

The Tivoli "incursion/siege" was a military-driven operation. That is another way of stating that The Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) played the central role in the planning and implementation of the exercise. It follows that any investigation into the armed confrontation between the civilians and members of the Security Forces must involve analysis of the veracity of the information informing the strategies which were considered,the options which were available, the factors informing the decisions taken, as well as the the nuts and bolts of the actual operation carried out.  The need for unbiased military expertise cannot be disputed. What is subject to debate is the formal role to be accorded to such skill set. Our position is that should be accorded the position of Commissioner reflecting the importance and centrality of such to the Commission of Enquiry aimed at unearthing the truth, irrespective of its inconvenience--political and otherwise. Others are of the view that suc...

In an earlier post we posited Some Preliminary Concerns regarding the proposed Tivoli Commission of Enquiry. With respect to the skill set of the panel of commissioners we noted the clear need for " a foreign security expert with specialized training/ experience in intelligence gathering & analysis, surveillance, and urban armed confrontation." We argued that t he exercise in Tivoli was a military operation and no doubt the security Forces are anxious to tell how they saved Jamaica, acted with considerable restraint and in so doing prevented the escalation of fatalities. "The questioning and analysis of the operations conducted by the Security Forces in Tivoli has to be the central focus of the COE. It cannot be a public relations exercise aimed at restoring the public's confidence in the Security Forces in general and the Jamaica Defence Force in particular." We post the original letter by Colonel Allan Douglas to the Observer : an edited vers...

The case for legislating the Prosecution's Right To Appeal Against An Acquittal In Criminal Cases  in Jamaica has been ventilated in a document emanating from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.Like any other case, the arguments presented have to be assessed before any conclusion can be made concerning the desirability,and/or appropriateness  of such in our judicial system. In a letter entitled "Prosecution Deserves Right To Appeal" published in The Gleaner, Saturday, April 19, 2014 Glenn Tucker states, inter alia, "asymmetry twists the criminal procedure towards the interest of defendants".  For what it is worth, that argument is hinged on two questionable predispositions: (a) the DPP's concern stems from the fact that the judge could make a error in law and where that exists, the matter should be revisited; and (b) there should be freedom from bias against both the defendant and the prosecution. Let us examine briefly the position of...

The right of appeal by the prosecution against an acquittal in criminal cases has been placed once again on the front burner of public discussion by the learned DPP, Paula Llewellyn QC in the aftermath of the Kern Spencer acquittal in the "Cuban Lightbulb Trial". The DPP has not shirked from declaring publicly that the Senior Resident Magistrate made "an error in law" by upholding the no- case submissions. In a document dated October 7, 2013 the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions put out its case for the Parliament to legislate such a right.. It is a very detailed document citing legal cases in support and giving quotations from eminent juris. To those unschooled in the law, this is heavy stuff--liberally infused with an overabundance of legalese. In this post we attempt to faithfully summarize some of  the main positions enunciated. We do so without indulging at this time in any assessment of whether the prosecution in Jamaica "deserves" s...

The GOJ has announced a budget of $100m for the Tivoli Commission of Enquiry; in addition to identifying a replacement for Velma Hylton QC. However, whilst the the candidate's name has been forwarded to the Leader of the Opposition in the "consultation ritual", there is still no indication of the proposed start up date. Of course it will be argued that such will depend, in part, on the availability of the Commissioners, the supporting staff, as well as the outstanding ballistics report - which its is said to have bedeviled the now retired Public Defender. Interesting the tension between the Office of the Public Defender and the Independent Commission of Investigation (INDECOM) as to the apportionment of blame for the delay seemed to be resolved with the former (probably as a departing gift) sending copies of some 42 files to the latter (without the public being given any reasons). These constitute the set that-- in the view of the Public Defender after analysing the...

The Resident Magistrate Court is not a court of record i.e. there is no court stenographer recording verbatim the proceedings of the trial. In case of an appeal, reliance is placed on the notes compiled by the sitting Resident Magistrate. Not having access to the RM's notes, resort has to be made by that recorded by one or both parties. Below is the "transcribed verbatim by a member of the prosecution's team". We have no way of attesting to the veracity of such ; and its posting is primarily to complete the picture--having published both No Case Submissions and the Crown's Response. R v Kern Spencer and Coleen Wright Ruling of   on Application for Permanent Stay of Proceedings and No Case Submission Her Honour Ms. Judith Pusey states: “No case submission was made by the defence and an application for the stay of the proceedings on the basis of delay and prosecutorial misconduct. The credibility of Rodney Chin was put in issue. In this case th...