By Sue-Ann Wayow
AN inquiry into the criminal justice system is about to be launched and you are being invited by Parliament to give your opinion on how the system could be more efficient.
The Joint Select Committee (JSC) on National Security is inviting citizens to make comments related to its “Inquiry into the Criminal Justice System in Trinidad and Tobago to determine strategies to achieve greater efficiency and effectiveness.”
On Wednesday, Parliament posted on its website that the Committee will consider three aspects.
These include:
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The components of an effective Criminal Justice System and how they are interrelated;
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The primary challenges faced at each stage in the Criminal Justice process; and
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Strategies (including legislation) to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Criminal Justice System.
The Parliament stated, “General public comments seem to indicate that there are delays at every stage of the criminal justice process. Therefore, the Committee is inviting you to share your experience with one or more of the following issues…”
These include:
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Lengthy period before commencement of a trial;
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Prolonged length of trial;
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Time spent on remand;
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Prison facilities and lack of proper rehabilitation programmes;
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Insufficiency of evidence leading to unsuccessful attempts to prosecute matters; or
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Any other specific issue with the Criminal Justice System that has affected you
Persons can post their comments on the link: https://bit.ly/3U1jzbU
Written comments can also be forwarded via email to jscnationalsecurity@
The deadline for submissions is May 5.
