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Lengthy pre-trial detention among violations hampering proper access to justice in Guyana
– US Human Rights Report
Kaieteur News – Alluding to human rights violations in its 2022 report, the US Department of State noted that lengthy pretrial detention continues to be hindrance to dispensing justice in Guyana.
Raymond Jones who spent more than nine years on remand for murder without a trial.
In its report the US Department of State said that the problem is due primarily to judicial inefficiency, staff shortages, and cumbersome legal procedures.
According to information compiled in the report released on March 20, 2023, “The average length of pretrial detention was three years for those awaiting trial at a Magistrates’ Court or the High Court.”
However, the report stated that often this timeframe exceeds the maximum possible sentence for the crime for which they were charged.
The State Department highlighted the case of Raymond Jones, whom the High Court freed in July 2022. Jones was accused of murder and was in pretrial detention for more than nine calendar years.
Jones, a Micobie Village, North Rupununi Savannah resident had filed legal proceedings over breaches of his constitutional rights caused by the state’s delay in prosecuting him for the crime.
Last July, High Court Judge, Sandil Kissoon quashed the longstanding murder indictment against Jones, noting that he had the “unthinkable” perpetrated against him “without compassion, conscience and without judicial discretion.”
The former accused had been an inmate on remand at the Camp Street Prison and other penal institutions for the offence of murder since December 28, 2012, a period of nine years, six months and 18 days.
The judge noted that under Article 144 of the Constitution, every citizen is guaranteed a free trial within a reasonable time by an impartial tribunal.
In his ruling, the judge had noted, “It was a grave tragedy that has occurred in the circumstances of the accused.
“The grave injustice that befalls Raymond Jones is not a singular cause of concern for this court. It is the gross dereliction that this accused, voiceless, incommunicado, without the support and unrepresented has been and continues to be subjected to, notwithstanding previous orders and directions made by this court on jail delivery in excess of one year ago,” the judge had said before he set Jones free.
Meanwhile, in addition to the issues of lengthy incarcerations, the Department of State noted that while the Laws of Guyana recognize the right to legal counsel, it is limited to those who could afford to pay, except in cases involving capital crimes.
“… There is no formal public defender system, a defendant in a murder case that reaches the High Court may receive a court-appointed attorney,” the document stated.
This is however, not convenient or may take some time as there are no established public defender’s systems.
The US Department of State report also said that there are delays and inefficiencies undermining judicial processes as a result of shortages of trained court personnel, postponements at the request of the defense or prosecution, occasional allegations of bribery, poor tracking of cases, and police slowness in preparing cases for trial caused delays.
Overall, the Department of State nonetheless stated that the law provides for the right to a fair and public trial, and the judiciary generally enforced this right.
The report said that individuals and organizations may access the court system to initiate lawsuits seeking damages for, or cessation of, human rights abuses with plaintiffs having the right to appeal adverse domestic decisions up to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).
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