About 90 per cent of files destroyed in a 2015 fire that engulfed the Coroner’s and Special Coroner’s Courts have been reconstructed. Chief Justice, Hon. Zaila McCalla, said 67 of the 77 active files, which were destroyed, have been replaced. She informed that six of the remaining 10 files are in the process of being reconstructed. Mrs. McCalla was speaking...

More courts across the island are to receive video-link and digital evidence recoding equipment to enable vulnerable witnesses to give evidence remotely. Permanent Secretary in the Justice Ministry, Carol Palmer, said the second part of a shipment valued at approximately $226 million is expected to arrive in the island by the end of July. “We got the first part of...

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Justice, Carol Palmer, is calling for strengthening of Jamaica’s commitment to the United Nations (UN) Palermo Protocol, which urges signatories to prevent and suppress the incidence of human trafficking. She said Government agencies must avoid complacency and redouble their efforts, in keeping with the Protocol’s requirements, to ensure Jamaica achieves Tier 1 classification in...

Jamaica’s maintenance of its Tier 2 ranking in the 2017 Trafficking in Persons report is a testament to the country’s notable progress towards curbing the crime. This is according to Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Justice, Carol Palmer, who said Jamaica has been making significant strides to meet the minimum standards of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of the...

More than 5,000 persons have benefited from the Citizen Security and Justice Programme (CSJP) III since its implementation in 2014. Of the number, over 2,000 were deemed to be at medium or high risk for involvement in crime and violence. Counselling services were provided for 1,000 persons; 404 received vocational skills training; 226 benefited from employment internships; and another 158...

Minister of Justice, Hon. Delroy Chuck, says he hopes plea bargaining will become a major component of the criminal justice system in Jamaica. He was speaking recently on the Jamaica Information Service (JIS) television programme, ‘Issues and Answers’. “Prosecutors must see negotiations with defence attorneys as a very important component to get rid of the vast majority of cases,” Mr....

Justice Minister Hon. Delroy Chuck, is urging all law abiding Jamaicans to join with the Government in the fight against crime and violence. “With every breath in me, I am going to make sure that Jamaica becomes a safe place once again. We deserve it and we must and will have it,” Mr. Chuck stated. He was speaking at a...