The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

It is an appalling act of cowardice that the powers that be should attempt to throw the attorney who appeared for the Crown in the habeas corpus application under the bus.

This has prompted me to borrow from the bard’s “Julius Caesar” and say: “The fault dear Brutus lies not in our staff but in ourselves that we should blame our underlings”.

An application for habeas corpus is a prerogative application, and, because it involves the freedom of the individual it has to be heard quickly. From statements made by Fred Smith QC (which have not been denied). It appears that adjournments had been given to the Crown in this matter to enable Affidavits to be filed in reply to those filed on behalf of the applicant Cubans. However, up to the date of the hearing when the application was granted no such documents had been filed.

Unless I see evidence to the contrary, I am sure that the attorney appearing for the Crown on the previous occasions  would have informed his political masters of the need to show reasons why the habeas corpus application should fail.

However, on the final appearance, the attorney having appeared with no Affidavit, he had no choice but to inform the court that he had nothing to say. In this connection, I wish to share the words told me by a former Chief Justice of The Bahamas who opined that a lawyer appearing without an Affidavit was like an attorney appearing before the court without his trousers. Consequently, at that stage, with nothing negating the granting of an order, the Judge was justified in hearing the application and granting the Order given.

Since then, we have heard persons saying that the AG’s office (meaning the hapless attorney), “dropped the ball”. No, this is far from the case. His political masters dropped the ball, and all the talk in the world cannot deny the fact that the attorney had no instructions.

In my opinion, this attorney is entitled to an apology and the blame must fall in the right place on the correct heads.

JEANNE I THOMPSON

Nassau,

February 25, 2016.