Bar Association calls for tighter security for members of the judiciary

Last Updated on Friday, 10 July 2015, 14:54 by GxMedia

The Guyana Bar Association (GBA) on Friday called for improved security for members of the judiciary, in the wake of the battery of Justice Nicole Pierre and her husband a day earlier.

“Judicial officers play an invaluable role in the administration of justice and the rule of law and every reasonable effort must be made to secure and protect them and their families,” said the GBA in a statement.

Justice Pierre’s security guard was held at gunpoint and tied up before the bandits entered her home through a window at about 1:40 AM Thursday.

The association also urged the government and police to take urgent steps to stem the rising tide of gun crimes.

At least four suspects have been held and a case and safe, which the bandits carted off from Pierre’s home at Felicity, East Coast Demerara were recovered after they dropped the booty in a hail of gunfire from a nearby security guard.

The badly beaten Pierre and her husband, Mohamed Chand, were admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of a private city hospital.

Below is the full text of the GBA’s statement:

The members of the Guyana Bar Association are shocked and saddened at the brutal attack on Commissioner of Title, Madam Nicola Pierre and her husband Mr. Mohamed Chand yesterday. It is all the more shocking that the attack took place in their home on the East Coast of Demerara while the judicial officer and her husband and son were asleep.

The thoughts of the members of the legal profession are with Ms. Pierre and her family as we await the results of their treatment and pray for their full and speedy recovery.

Judicial officers play an invaluable role in the administration of justice and the rule of law and every reasonable effort must be made to secure and protect them and their families. While it is a measure of some relief that the alleged perpetrators have been captured and are in custody, the Association notes that too many serious crimes remain unsolved.

The Association has noted with increasing concern the escalating incidents of crimes committed on citizens, almost all of which involve the use of firearms, and many of which have resulted in the death of the victims. The frequency and the serious nature of these attacks are desensitising our society to the rights of citizens to safety and security whether in or out of their homes, and the duty of the State to protect every citizen, of whatever station in life. 

The Association calls on the Minister of Public Security and the Commissioner of Police to develop strategies and take action to combat the level of violence in our society. Further, the Association calls on the Government to ensure that our law enforcement agencies are provided with the necessary tools to adequately address crimes in all their manifestations in our country.