Dear Editor,

We of the Manchester Bar Association note that the minister of national security, the Hon Dwight Nelson, recently saw fit to comment publicly on the way the Hon Mr Justice Leighton Pusey recently discharged his duties.

We take issue with the minister on the following grounds:

1. The minister, by his comments, may have made the witnesses in the matter for which the accused were granted bail, fearful of attending court when they otherwise might not have had such concerns had he not made those comments.

2. The general public, of which we are members, may get the impression that it is not un-common for politicians to try to influence members of the judiciary in ways not provided for under the laws of Jamaica, which would be a most unfortunate impression to have.

3. One of the primary methods of stemming the crime wave ought to be to focus on the investigation and apprehension of suspects, and not the functioning of the judiciary.

4. It is not, and never should be, the role of the judiciary to fight crime, but rather to fairly and impartially apply the laws of the country in just manner.

Tangentially the public must be reminded of the lengthy debate in the House of Representatives over the death penalty when we had 10,000 murders in the past 15 years with only eight persons on death row at the time.

Manchester Bar Association

3 Hotel Street

Mandeville

Manchester