KINGSTON, Jamaica – Following utterances made by the Island Traffic Authority and the Jamaica Constabulary Force regarding the settlement of outstanding traffic tickets in the courts, the Judiciary has issued a statement declaring that it “speaks for itself” on such matters.

“The Judiciary of Jamaica is an independent body, and disseminates information to the public directly, regarding judicial matters. Recent communication disseminated to the public from the Island Traffic Authority and the Jamaica Constabulary Force regarding the court procedure for traffic tickets contained inaccurate information,” said a statement from the Court Administration Division (CAD).

“We wish to state that no other entity is authorised to speak on behalf of the court,” CAD added.

The CAD is advising members of the public who may have a matter before the court to contact the particular court to obtain information or clarification which they may require.

It explained that court lists are generated prior to the date for court, based on the date noted on the traffic tickets. It said traffic tickets with dates which have passed will be addressed on a date indicated by the court.

Members of the public are urged to contact the court in the parish they received the ticket or the CAD at (876) 613-8907, (876) 754-8337, (876) 908-0138 or by emailing customerservice@cad.gov.jm in order to be provided with details on how to proceed.

The CAD informed on Friday that effective this Monday, the Corporate Area Traffic Court will be held nightly and on Saturdays as part of the effort to clear thousands of outstanding traffic tickets before a new traffic management system takes effect.

Once the new system is in effect, persons with outstanding traffic tickets will be unable to licence their motor vehicle or renew their driver’s licence. Such persons also run the risk of being arrested by the police.