The Tribune

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe says officials are not satisfied with the Director of Public Prosecutions’ management of the office.

Mr Munroe said concerns about how the office is being run as well as the issue of people on bail being murdered will be among the key items discussed when he and Garvin Gaskin, the DPP, meet in the days ahead.

The minister made the comments when asked whether his ministry planned to revise its crime fighting strategies given the recent spate of murders and the increasing number of men being killed while out on bail.

“From the standpoint of the ministry, I have engaged in talks with the chief magistrate and chief justice with a view to getting implemented the commissioner of police’s intent that when you come to court for a firearms matter, the police will be finished with the presentation of their case 14 days from the date that you go to court and with a hope that the magistracy can compel them the case to be concluded within 21 days,” he told reporters yesterday.

“We’ve had positive feedback from that and we hope to engage in that very shortly. With regard to persons on bail for murder who are waiting trials in the Supreme Court – that’s a more complex issue.

“I have to engage with the office of the DPP and I have asked Minister of State Jomo Campbell, who has responsibility for that office in the Office of the Attorney General, to arrange a meeting between myself, the commissioner and the DPP. We are not satisfied with his management of the office in what we’re seeing, and we’re going to have a conversation over it.”

When asked to elaborate on his concerns about office operations, the minister replied that he didn’t want to speak in depth on the full list of matters.

However, he highlighted the DDP’s absence, or that of another higher-level official, in certain murder cases and lamented the issue of alleged offenders being fined instead of remanded when breaching their bail conditions.

Mr Munroe said yesterday: “The matters that are in the public domain because questions have been coming about it is they’re not pleased, for instance, that you could have a case for murder that is being defended by two (King’s counsel) and a number of junior lawyers, and he would not be doing it personally and people that are higher level would not be doing it.

“That’s regarded by the officers who work the case as being disrespectful to their work and there is something to be said for that.”

The minister continued: “Currently, we are encountering the issue, as you would have seen and been documented, of persons being admitted to bail for armed robbery (or) murder being ordered to be electronically monitored (and) breaching the terms of their bail, insofar as data is concerned, going back to court being fined in many cases, and not remanded.

“So, the issue there is that the courts respond to what is happening. He is independently in charge of the prosecutorial system. I have not been advised that there have been any appeals of those decisions onward to the Court of Appeal.

“That is troubling to me as a practitioner who has been in practice for three decades.”

In view of these concerns, Mr Munroe said he asked Minister Campbell to arrange the meeting as soon as possible, adding that “if it can be within the course of this week, that would not be soon enough for me.”

“It’s a problem that we have put together an entire unit - an electronic monitoring unit - headed by, I think it’s either a superintendent or an assistant superintendent. That is manpower directed towards the purposes that we monitor people, and we need to have value and results for our efforts.

“I’m not satisfied that that is happening and my job as minister isn’t to do the police’s work, but to respond to the police when they have issues that arise, and they put it to me and I respond to that.”

This year’s murder count currently stands at 113 after four people, including two men on bail for serious crimes, were shot and killed between Saturday and Monday.

If this trend continues, the 2022 murder toll will outpace last year’s tally of 119.

When asked if the government was minded to stiffen legislation to crack down on the rising crime rate, Mr Munroe said The Bahamas already had “very high sentences” and added that he was satisfied with current penalties.

“Where we have to improve is getting the matters to trial and getting results,” he added. “It’s pointless to have a law that you get 40 years in prison if you never get to the end of the trial and so I’m satisfied that the penalty levels are fine. What we’re seeking to address is to move to improve trial times.”