Justice Stanley John (Actg.) of the Grand Court has now issued a ruling to “stay” or halt the proceedings involving the indecent assault case against veteran politician McKeeva Bush.
Explaining the reason for halting proceedings, Justice Stanley John (Actg.) said that the Court is “concerned with the process, and I stress, the process by which the decision to prosecute was made.”
The “process” which Justice John referred is a matter raised during the proceedings by Bush’s lawyer, Sallie Bennett-Jenkins KC.
It is important to note that while the details of the legal issues surrounding the process were discussed between Bennett-Jenkins KC and the prosecutor Charles Miskin KC, the members of the jury were not present. In addition, the members of the media were barred from reporting on the legal submissions made by both sides.
After hearing from the defence and the prosecution and reviewing disclosures made, Justice John issued his ruling to halt the proceedings.
While stay or halt to court proceedings is a rare outcome, Justice John’s ruling noted that “Courts do have an inherent power to stay proceedings in certain situations.”
“That power must be exercised within “NARROW CONSTRAINTS” and must not be used as a tool for disciplining the police or the Prosecution,” he added.
Justice John concluded by noting that detailed written reasons for the ruling will be provided at a later date.
In the meantime, it is understood that the Director of Public Prosecutions may decide to appeal the ruling.
