By Nasratu Kargbo
The Master and Registrar of the High Court of Sierra Leone Elaine Thomas-Archibald has informed pressmen of the special judicial week created by Chief Justice Desmond Babatunde Edwards to handle all cases of prisoners without indictment. She said this during the weekly government press briefing on the 20th January 2022 at the Ministry of Information and Communication.
She explained that the judicial week will commence on the 31st January to the 4th February 2022 “there will be a recess nationwide, and we will be dealing with prisoners without indictment nationwide and many more”. The judicial week will give inmates that have been incarcerated the opportunity to defend themselves and clearly state that they have been imprisoned without indictment.
The Supreme Court Registrar Lansana Kottor Kamara explained that it is not the responsibility of the judiciary to offer indictment and has no obligation in that regard, saying that the office of the Attorney General and Chief Justice is entirely responsible for indictment.
According to Kamara, they have observed that there is a gap within the criminal justice system and that the judicial week is therefore organized to look into issues of the right to justice. This he said is essential and will create a platform for the inmates to be brought judges, issues of prolonged adjournment, summary reviews amongst others.
Presenting successes and achievements of the Sierra Leone Judiciary, the Head of Communication of the Judiciary of Sierra Leone, Elkass Sannoh made mentioned of the new specialized courts such as the ACC court, Sexual Offences Model Court. He said the sexual offences court is the first of its kind in the sub-region. He said the court has attracted the Solicitor General from the Gambia to Sierra Leone in order to learn how Sierra Leone operates the court.
He spoke about the first virtual court, wherein a person from America can be a witness at a court proceeding in the main law court building or any other court. Sannoh added that magistrates have been recruited and deployed in all districts across the country, noting that this is the first time the country has been sitting judges in areas like Kailahun, Port Loko, Moyamba, Koinadugu, etc.
He also presented a short documentary that provided pictorial evidence of the projects that were undertaken by the judiciary.
Speaking on the numbers, Sannoh said before now they had 26 judges, now the judiciary has 43 judges including the Chief Justices, the judiciary now has 34 magistrates deployed in all districts compared to 27 before now. He said 188 staff are employed without university requirement, 22 with just three passes in WASSCE, and 165 with BECE.
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