| Hearsay evidence rules to be changed | | Print | |
| Written by Richard Green/richard@fptci.com | |||
| Friday, 21 October 2011 11:41 | |||
 With criminal charges against former government officials expected any day now, the Attorney General is proposing to change Turks and Caicos Islands law regarding hearsay and documentary evidence. On Oct. 18, members of the TCI Bar Association were given seven days to comment on a bill which is nearly identical to current U.K. criminal law on hearsay and documentary evidence. Several lawyers have criticized the brief consultation period for such important changes in laws. “This bill sets out the rules which allow evidence other than first-hand evidence to be given in criminal proceedings,” says an explanatory memorandum in the draft bill. “The two main categories are hearsay evidence and documentary evidence, but within those categories there are various types of evidence, including evidence given by signs, video camera evidence and so on.” His Excellency the Gov. Ric Todd said the AG is consulting the Bar about “changing the laws of evidence. It is not about allowing hearsay to be accepted. It is simply allowing courts to hear more evidence without unnecessary difficulties. “But this is quite a serious consultation, and I will be dismayed if people try to portray this as being somehow directed against the interests or liberties of individuals. But it’s not. It’s all about achieving the most effective possible justice system.” The Progressive National Party (PNP) issued a press statement Oct. 19 alleging that the changes are specifically aimed at aiding cases being made by the Special Investigation and Prosecution Team, which the PNP suggests may have sought the changes. “The draft bill is unwarranted and represents an attempt by this administration to further erode an accused person’s rights to a fair trial in these islands and will deny accused persons of the protections previously afforded under our laws,” the PNP statement says. Attorney General Huw Shepheard told the fp that the bill has come up now in the course of his office’s capacity for law drafting. “Legislation allowing hearsay evidence to be given is not designed to secure convictions against particular individuals,” Shepheard said. “It is a statute of general application that is intended to improve the administration of criminal justice in the islands.” “No one will be prosecuted on the basis of hearsay evidence alone, but allowing hearsay evidence to be given will, amongst other things, protect witnesses from intimidation by enabling written statements to be given if a witness is too frightened to come to court,” he said. The attorney general said he will bring the bill before the governor’s Advisory Council and the Consultative Forum as quickly as possible. He said it part of his effort for a complete codification of all criminal law and a uniform system of criminal procedure for all courts, work that is funded by the U.K. “When I took up my appointment, I was dismayed to learn that the criminal law of the islands had not (save for some few areas) been kept up to date for very many years, and my chambers have been working hard to introduce much-needed reforms,” Shepheard said. Most of the Criminal Justice (Hearsay And Documentary Evidence) Bill [2011] is based on current U.K. law enacted in 2003, but it also includes provisions that are current practice in TCI courts. The proposed bill says hearsay evidence is admissable if it is contained in public documents or published works dealing with matters of a public nature, which is allowed under current law. It also allows hearsay evidence if all parties in the case agree, or if a judge is “satisfied that it is in the interests of justice for it to be admissible.” Earlier this year, the TCI Constitution was revised to allow for criminal trials without juries in the Supreme Court, which is also the case in the U.K. A law setting out the conditions for non-jury trials says prosecutors, defendants or judges can make the request on several different grounds, and a judge’s decision on the request can be appealed to a three-member court of appeal. Click here to read the Criminal Justice (Hearsay And Documentary Evidence) Bill [2011] Click here to read the PNP statement Click here to read the attorney general's statement Click here to read one law firm's letter on the proposed bill Photo: Gov. Ric Todd (Richard Green/Staff)
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