Gomes
Glenda Anderson, Staff Reporter
CONCERNS ABOUT the continued selection from a pool of over-used or "career" jurors to work in the island's courts have been raised by persons in the justice system.
The situation, they say, has cast some doubt over the procedure used to select jurors for court cases, and the loyalties of persons chosen, and has brought the integrity of trials into question.
"It's the same pool...it happens frequently," one lawyer said. "The Coroner's Court, for example, had a problem where they were what you could call 'professional' jurors. Sometimes we have to sit down and look on the people like a hawk. In the country parts its worse there are faces there on every panel for the day. "
Local human rights activist, Dr. Carolyn Gomes, has suggested that in some instances it could even be a way of life for some of the persons being used.
"There are reports of persons serving routinely, collecting $2,500 a week for 10 years. That's making a living," she said.
Commenting on the impact on the delivery of justice, Dr. Gomes said, "If it is that you are repeating jurors, then you begin to wonder how and why they repeat, because that is not to be. But is it that the police are serving summons to particular people repeatedly and this prejudices the chances of a fair hearing? There's (now) the question of fairness, balance and integrity."
But the Justice Ministry has complained of a crippling shortage of jurors to serve on panels in term sittings.
"It is unfortunate but it is true," said Michael Cohen, public relations officer with the Security Ministry.
Mr. Cohen said despite efforts to attract jurors, persons had found ways to avoid duty. This limited the actual number of persons available for duty.
SERIOUS SHORTAGE
Winston Daley, supervisor at the Supreme Court in Kingston, admitted that there had been serious shortages.
"We have been getting just enough (jurors) to manage. The returns have been very low. We'll send out 600 jury summons but sometimes only 250 are served and then from that amount we have absentees, or some persons sending up excuses to be put on a later list. The figure may then go down to about 120 or 110 which now has to be split among the four courts and sometimes it's not enough," Mr. Daley said.
"For example, if four or five persons are charged together we'll need more persons because the 'accused' has the right to challenge up to five of the jurors."
"We'll send about 720 names on the list, but when they come back only 200 persons have been served," explained Jean Crawford, jury clerk at the Supreme Court.
"Then the number which will turn up may be 70 or 80 persons, because the amount served is not the amount which turns up," she said.
"The returns are especially poor in some areas. In St. James, for example of 720 summonses sent recently, 100 were served. In St. Catherine of 560 sent, there were 96 served," Ms. Crawford said.
"It needs on average about 40 persons for each case, where there are two accused persons. There should be at least 14 (replacement jurors in the event of) for challenges, 12 for the prosecutors challenge, plus another 12 for the panel. The more accused there are, the more we need."
Mr. Daley dismissed, however, the suggestion of repeat jurors saying, "We touch every letter on the voters list and we're talking hundreds of names, so there are no repeats. If it is that we have called one or two which came up a year or two ago, then there's been a mistake."
The jury clerk at the Coroner's Court would not respond to complaints of repeat jurors or even insufficient jurors for daily cases.
The Coroner was said to be unavailable for comment before sometime this week.
The island's Jury Act (1981) allows for a panel of 12 jurors in a trial of 'indictment for murder and treason'.
In a trial of indictment before the Circuit Court for 'any criminal case besides murder', the panel consists of seven jurors.
"In making panels of jurors the registrars shall not place any juror on the panel a second time until all the jurors have been placed once on the panel, and the registrar shall make up the panels so that all jurors shall be summoned equally."
MAKING SELECTIONS
Ms. Crawford said jurors for the Supreme Court are allowed to serve for one sitting every four or five years. A sitting or term may last for up to four weeks depending on the number of cases, she said.
In the rural areas, the number of persons summoned is less as the term lasts for three weeks.
The Jury Act allows too, that the final selection of persons to serve as jurors is done by a panel of justices (chosen by the Custos of each parish). The group should also include the chief police officer for the parish, and is presided over by a resident magistrate in the parish.
According to the law it is this panel which makes 'omissions, additions and corrections,' to produce the final list.
"The list after such omissions and additions and corrections have been made shall be allowed by the justices present ... shall cause a copy thereof to be displayed in a conspicuous place in each court house and police station within the parish."
When The Sunday Gleaner checked with one rural police station, the process was a little different.
One superintendent said deliberations on the list are made by a group comprising district constables and police officers only.
"The list comes from the registrar of the court, to Detention and Courts (unit at the police station) then to the superintendent's office where the revision is done, then it is sent back to the courts," he said.
The summonses were served by officers and the jury list, he said, was posted in the police station.
