A former police commissioner is calling on Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Clement Joseph to provide greater transparency over the discontinuation of a major cannabis importation case involving a Canadian national, according to Antigua News Room.
Attorney-at-law Wendell Alexander argued that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, as a key public institution within the criminal justice system, bears a responsibility to properly explain decisions made in matters of significant public interest.
Speaking on Observer Radio's Voice of the People programme, Alexander said the public deserved more than a brief explanation citing medical grounds.
"In the interest of transparency, I would say that the public has a right to know because the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions is a public office," Alexander said. "When certain major decisions are taken, especially if the matter has become a cause célèbre, to give a proper explanation before the general public is good for the justice system."
In a separate interview with Observer Media, DPP Joseph clarified that the case was not discontinued because the accused was unfit to plead, pushing back against speculation circulating on social media. He stated that the woman is reportedly suffering from an advanced stage of cancer and that Antigua and Barbuda would be unable to adequately support her medical needs if she remained incarcerated locally. He also noted that the decision had been under review since March and was not made hastily.
Alexander, however, questioned whether standard legal processes had been followed. While acknowledging he did not possess all the facts, he pointed to previous cases in which defendants initially deemed medically unfit later returned to court once cleared by medical professionals.
"There is a misconception that the actions of the DPP cannot be challenged in court, and it can be," Alexander stated. "The DPP, though he holds wide powers under the Constitution, his actions can be challenged if it is deemed to be unreasonable, or if it is deemed to be an abuse of authority. It can be challenged in the High Court of Justice by way of judicial review."
Joseph rejected suggestions that his office was contributing to declining public confidence in the justice system, placing the blame instead on misinformation and speculation spread via social media. He referenced another recent drug matter involving a Jamaican national in which he was publicly accused of withdrawing charges, despite only receiving the case file after the allegations had already circulated online.
The DPP further maintained that the Constitution grants his office discretionary authority, and that prosecutors across the Caribbean do not typically hold press conferences to justify decisions in individual cases.
Alexander also raised serious concerns about the police-involved shooting death of 18-year-old Khaleel Simon, alleging that officers failed to follow proper procedures during the incident. Alexander, who has been retained by the Simon family, claimed that a Criminal Investigations Department officer used his private vehicle to pursue Simon after reportedly receiving WhatsApp messages from a female associate. He further alleged that a uniformed officer who exited the same vehicle discharged his firearm without first identifying himself or issuing any instruction for Simon to exit the vehicle.
"There is absolutely no right for a police officer in his private vehicle, bring another officer in uniform at the scene and accost Khaleel Simon," Alexander said. "That's not the way in which this process and this operation ought to be done."
Alexander also claimed that no weapon was recovered from Simon's vehicle following the shooting.
The DPP confirmed that the Simon matter remains under active police investigation and that his office has not yet become involved in the case.
Beyond these two matters, Alexander is advocating for the establishment of an independent body to investigate police-involved incidents, the issuance of timely public statements in major national matters, and the consolidation of criminal legislation into a single penal code. He confirmed that the Simon family is preparing to file a wrongful death lawsuit.
Meanwhile, DPP Joseph emphasised that the cannabis importation case remains technically alive and could be reopened in the future should circumstances permit.
