Senator A.J. Nicholson and Senator Dorothy Lightbourne
AMENDMENTS TO the Offences Against the Person Act, which will allow murders associated with burglary to attract the death penalty were passed in the Upper House on Friday.
Justice Minister Senator A.J. Nicholson, who piloted the bill, said the amendments were in response to the Privy Council ruling last year in the Evon Smith case of July 2000.
"The purpose of this amended legislation is to nullify the effect of that decision although, of course, the ruling itself, so far as the Appellant Smith is concerned, will not be affected," he said.
Evon Smith, a Jamaican, was given the death penalty after he broke into his girlfriend's house and murdered her.
OVERTURNED RULING
The U.K.-based Privy Council subsequently overturned the court ruling.
But Nicholson said that the Privy Council in its interpretation erred.
"In this case, we are fully
satisfied that such legislation is required in order to restore the intention of this Parliament when the regional legislation was passed," he said.
"There is no doubt that Parliament intended, when providing for categories of murder that would attract the death penalty, to include murder associated with house breaking and burglary."
Nicholson again voiced his dissatisfaction with several rulings made by the Privy Council in relation to the country carrying out the death penalty.
But this criticism did not go unnoticed by the Opposition.
"Madam President, it is unfortunate that the minister took the opportunity to really enter into what I consider a tirade against the Privy Council and its judges, and to ascribe motives. I don't think we should go down that route," said Opposition Senator on Legal Matters, Dorothy Lightbourne.
UNREPENTANT
But Senator Nicholson was unrepentant. He said that some judges of the Privy Council were opposed to the death penalty on humanitarian and other grounds.
"I am not ascribing motives, I am just stating a fact. They have said it, they have written books and articles on the matter, they have given lectures on the
matter," he said.
He accused the Opposition of refusing to acknowledge that the judges of the Privy Council since the early 90s have taken means to circumscribe areas so that the death penalty cannot be carried out.
He, however, warned the Opposition that many Jamaicans wish for the death penalty to be carried out.
"... The vast majority of people in Jamaica wish for the death penalty, they do, the vast majority. If a law is on the statute books and you don't carry out the law, it is going to send chaos into the society. That is how life is," he said.
D.R.
