For Lack Of Jurors… Man Incarcerated For 23 Months Without Trial
Osman Sesay, an
alleged murderer has been incarcerated for 23 months without trial. He has been
behind bars and his matter has never been heard due to lack of jurors to sit at
his case.
Statistics shows
that there are 25 jurors that serving nine High Court Judges in the Freetown
Judicial District.
Appeal Court
Judge, Justice Alusine Sesay on Monday 10th April 2017 confirmed
that there are other murder matters that have gone months without being looked
into based on the lack of jurors in his court.
He noted that,
in a bid to promote speedy trial in Sierra Leone’s Justice sector, the
country’s High Court would be adding into its current amount 24 jurors to help
expedite matters in the justice system.
Justice Alusine
Sesay made this revelation during a criminal session while addressing a witness
that has been attending his court for months in a murder matter that he is
supposed to testify.
He assured that
the awaited jurors would make their way-in just after the holiday and that that
could be a boost into the justice sector which would ensure that matters that
require jurors would be speedily laid to rest.
Meanwhile, there
are serious matters in court that have been delayed due to the lack of jurors
who should assist a sitting judge in the High Court to pass verdict in every
murder matter.
The issue of
jurors on trials at the high court of Sierra Leone has for a very long time
been a major problem as accused persons are incarcerated for long periods
without being tried.
The issue of
jurors is one of the key points that were presented by the Judiciary during the
Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) exercise in Sierra Leone.
Story By
Abdulrahman Koroma
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