Judge orders St James police to bring absent jurors to court

High Court judge Justice Bertram Morrison, who is presiding over the new term at the St James Circuit Court, has ordered the police to bring before him the 12 jurors who were served summonses and failed to show up this morning.

He made the order after the court was told that 29 persons were served for jury duties but only 17 had reported at the start of the court sitting. 

“Superintendent [Eron Samuels], I want the 12 others who were served and are not here brought to court because if they were served the server must know where they were served. I want them brought before the court,” Morrison said. 

Morrison also told the jurors present that he would not be granting any excuses, especially for those who will come with sick leave, arguing that some sick leave are being fabricated. 

“I hope none of you are going to be tendering sick certificates. Not a certificate that you are sick, because there is a distinction there. I have no doubt that some of them are manufactured,” the High Court judge told the jurors. 

“I will not be excusing anyone of you. If you want to be excused you can go to the witness box where I will question you as to why you think you should be not serving,” he said. 

There are 340 cases listed for trial over the next nine weeks, with 132 matters of lottery scamming sit at the top of the list. Murders account for 102 cases, rape 48. There are also 15 cases of having sex with a person under the age of 16, and five cases of causing death by dangerous driving, rounding out the top five offences on the trial list.

We want to hear from you! Email us at star@gleanerjm.com and follow @thejamaicastar on Instagram and on X @JamaicaStar and on Facebook: @TheJamaicaStar.