Magistrate jails two police ranks; told me God is his priority

Feb 12, 2014 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

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This columnist will not spare the police force for the rotten behaviour of some of its ranks. But when the police are wronged by the rich and powerful and by the justice system itself, then society should speak up
This columnist is against the decision by Magistrate Clive Nurse last week to jail two police ranks for two years for allowing an escorted prisoner to escape, an incident which occurred in 2007. It took six years before this matter was concluded. That in itself is a nasty manifestation of injustice.
The two ranks (Ertest Ivan and Sandra Corridus) were charged for allowing a prisoner to escape. The prisoner, at the time was facing a murder charge. Dale Andrews of this newspaper said the woman was acquitted of both accusations – escaping from custody and murder.
So the prisoner didn’t escape because she was acquitted of the charge; so then if she was, how could the two police personnel be jailed for allowing a process to happen when the process didn’t happen? But equally important a question is why were the two police jailed for two years? Something is just not right in this case.
The lawyer for the two ranks, Arun Gajraj, said to me that maybe it has to do with the fact that he once sent a letter of complaint to the Chancellor against Magistrate Nurse and got redress.
In 2007, the charges were insisted upon by then Police Commissioner Henry Greene. Life is just about one irony after another. In my book, Henry Greene was one of the most unacceptable Guyanese citizens ever to become a policeman, much less Commissioner of Police.
In a stratagem to deflect from his nationally-known egregious indiscretions, Greene wanted to appear lawful and professional so these two police officials were charged, with public relations being the real motive.
What is so odious about the justice system is that the untouchables get away with much more horrible crimes, but policemen who risk their lives for a monthly forty-five thousand dollars can be jailed for negligence. The male rank has a good anti-crime record and was the victim of several attacks by criminals in the past. Is this the way you treat such a policeman?
Why two years? Why not two months, even three, even six? Why not probation? Surely, two years represents a horribly severe sentence given the circumstances.
How should society react to this injustice?
Firstly, the press must ask the magistrate in question to give an explanation as to the length of the sentence. Secondly, society must demand an explanation as to why this matter lived within the court system for six years. Those who are quick to expose the police for terrible atrocities, and rightfully so, must be fair and seek justice for police ranks who are treated unfairly by this society, and this case is a blatant example of wrongful treatment of these two persons by the justice system. I hope the opposition parties and other stakeholders make a statement on this unjust situation.
The danger with this story is that other policemen and policewomen are going to learn the lesson of this tragedy and society will lose out. These ranks are going to ask themselves if it is worth going to jail for two years for a minor offence in an organization where you work for forty-five thousand dollars a month and your life is always in danger.
The wife of the jailed policeman told me the six-year-old case has virtually emptied the family’s pocket. Now she has to take another lawyer for the appeal and bail application. She insisted that I must print that her husband never left the van and therefore was wrongfully charged.
I sought a comment from the magistrate in question. Magistrate Nurse is also pastor of a Wortmanville church, New Testament of God. He flatly refused to discuss his controversial decision to jail the two police ranks. He denies that Mr. Gajraj ever made any kind of complaint against him to anyone in the judiciary. He did say to me that God is his priority and everything else is secondary. I asked him if I can quote him as saying so and he had no objection. I was talking to him on the phone with Dale Andrews listening in.
What is strange to me is if God is his priority, then God has to guide him in everything he does, whether on or off the bench. Did God guide him in his decision to jail two police ranks for two years rather than two months?
I did say to the magistrate I will write the Chancellor on this very peculiar sentencing.

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To our readers, just an editorial thought: The woman was freed because she did not escape. The court contended that she was let go, which seems to justify the sentence.   

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