KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs, Marlene Malahoo Forte, has served notice that people charged with certain crimes will be denied bail under an amended Bail Act.

Malahoo Forte gave the warning Tuesday as she made her contribution to the Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives.

“I should like to advise the honourable House that a new Bail Act is coming. I wanted to table it today but we are revising the wording of some clauses,” she said.

“I will say no more at this stage, except that “if yuh on murder charge you cannot be at large and if yuh on gun charge yuh cannot be at large”.

There have been repeated outcry in the society as people on bail for murder are often fingered in fresh homicides, so too individuals on bail in relation to gun crimes who, whilst on bail, use the weapon to commit another crime.

The police have long called for amendments to the Bail Act to address this matter.

A joint select committee of the Parliament has been reviewing the Bail Act and Malahoo Forte had signalled for some time that a Bill was to be tabled soon.