Head of the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) Terrence Williams is calling on the country’s legislators to amend the Committal Proceedings Act to ensure that statements collected by investigative bodies as well as ordinary citizens can be accepted by the court in cases where the matters are being fast-tracked to trial.

Under the Act, which was operationalised last January, criminal cases which would normally be subjected to a preliminary hearing in the parish courts are now sent straight to the high court without a hearing, once the statements are completed.

However, according to Williams, “The Act has a significant flaw in that it only refers to statements taken by members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force as being admissible under that Act. It therefore means that statements taken by district constables, investigator of INDECOM or the public defender, the children’s advocate, or by lawyers or ordinary citizens cannot be tendered under that Act.”

“This Act was passed to speed up criminal trials by doing away with the old form of preliminary enquiry, allowing statements to be used at the proceedings rather than the witness having to come and give live evidence,” he said.

But Williams said the current flaw is taking away the efficient procedure from a category of investigative groups and individuals who have a right to have their matters heard before the courts.

Additionally, he said, there appears to be some difficulty in the uniform application of the law in some courts and some misunderstanding.

Nevertheless, Williams said, “We will ask that the law be amended to treat statements admissible under the Act in a way which includes all investigative bodies, and also includes a mechanism where ordinary citizens, if interested to bring a case before the court, can have their statements admitted as good statements.”

Earlier this year, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Paula Llewellyn also raised concerns about the Act, noting that it was contributing to the heavy backlog of cases before the courts.

The DPP pointed out that a number of cases that were sent down to the high courts via committal proceedings were not completed, hence resulting in further delays.

— Tanesha Mundle