The Antigua and Barbuda government will recruit up to five additional attorneys to strengthen the prosecution team within the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions as part of a wider effort to improve the country’s criminal justice system.
Director General of Communications Maurice Merchant announced the measures during Thursday’s post-Cabinet media briefing following extensive discussions by Cabinet on the recent increase in crime and violence.
Merchant said Cabinet examined several areas of the criminal justice system, including prosecution, sentencing, prison administration and law enforcement capacity.
The Cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda concluded that stronger legislation and more effective policing must be supported by a properly staffed prosecution service capable of preparing and presenting criminal cases efficiently.
The government therefore approved the employment of up to five additional lawyers for the DPP’s Office. The recruits are expected to increase the office’s capacity to prosecute criminal matters, including serious and complex cases.
Cabinet also approved full scholarships for two police officers to pursue the law programme at the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus.
After graduating, the officers will be assigned to the DPP’s Office and join its prosecution team. The initiative is expected to provide the office with prosecutors who already have practical experience in policing and criminal investigations.
In addition to expanding the prosecution team, Cabinet approved a specialised training programme for prosecutors.
The programme is intended to strengthen their professional capacity in the prosecution of criminal matters, particularly serious and complex cases. Merchant said the training would help ensure that prosecutors have the knowledge and skills necessary to represent the state effectively.
The training initiative will complement the recruitment of the five additional attorneys and the longer-term plan to train the two police officers as lawyers.
Merchant said the measures form part of a comprehensive response to serious crime in Antigua and Barbuda that extends across the entire criminal justice process, rather than focusing exclusively on sentencing.
Cabinet has also agreed to introduce legislation establishing minimum and maximum sentences for serious gun crimes and sexual offences involving minors.
The proposed legislation will be subjected to consultations with relevant stakeholders before it is finalised and taken to Parliament. The government said this would allow the measures to receive the necessary legal and technical consideration.
The Antigua and Barbuda government said it would continue combining stronger law enforcement with legislative reform and improvements to prosecution and other areas of the criminal justice system.
This article was originally published by Antigua News Room. Read the original article here: Antigua and Barbuda Government to Hire Five Prosecutors and Train Police Officers for DPP’s Office.