Cayman Islands

Stuart Jack, a governor with balls. It is not often that you see a British governor of a colony taking firm action to restore integrity in public office. I have written often enough about the FCO’s preferred technique of brushing the dirt under the carpet. But, Stuart Jack is a governor of a different breed. It will be interesting to see if he serves out his full term of appointment in Cayman Islands. I expect that an opportunity will be found soon enough to return him to London. He has had a series of extraordinary challenges with both the judiciary and senior officers in the past year.

Stuart Jack

On 28 March, Jack announced that he had sent Police Commissioner Stuart Kernohan, Deputy Commissioner Rudolph Dixon, and Detective Chief Superintendent John Jones on leave with immediate effect. He announced he was doing this to enable an investigating team from the Metropolitan Police Service led by Detective Chief Superintendent Martin Bridger to proceed with enquiries. This followed earlier investigations into allegations made against Deputy Commissioner Anthony Ennis which resulted in Ennis’ complete exoneration.

Martin Bridger

On 23 July, the independence and reputation of the judiciary took a blow. Chief Justice Anthony Smellie was obliged by rumours circulating in the Cayman Islands to issue an unprecedented press release concerning Judge Priya Levers. Rumours were rife that she had been suspended or was about to be terminated. The Chief Justice assured the public that she was merely away on leave. That was his statement in its entirety. Hardly reassuring when you consider that persons about to be charged or arrested are frequently sent on leave. The only shorter comment that the Chief Justice could have made was, “No comment”. It would have been no less informative and not more reassuring.

Anthony Smellie

On 5 August, Dixon was charged with two counts of misconduct in public office and two counts of doing an act tending and intended to pervert the course of public justice. Kernohan and Jones are still under formal investigation for possible misconduct in public office.

Rudolph Dixon

On 16 September, Governor Jack announced the appointment of a Judicial Tribunal to investigate allegations of misbehaviour in judicial office against Judge Levers. The allegations concern certain “financial irregularities”. The Tribunal will be chaired by Sir Andrew Leggatt QC, a former Justice of Appeal in the UK. Needless to say, the Governor has suspended Judge Levers while this process is taking place.

Priya Levers

Then, on 24 September, Jack announced the arrest of Judge Alexander Henderson on charges of misconduct in public office. He was held and questioned at the police station until his release the following day. It seems he was only arrested because he refused to be interviewed in the investigation into the activities of the suspended police officers. He had given a written statement, but refused to be cross-examined orally. So, they arrested him and questioned him for several hours. We all hope it was nothing more than that. The judge has an excellent reputation both in Canada and in the Cayman Islands.

Alexander Henderson

As a result, the rule of law in our sister British Overseas Territory of the Cayman Islands has taken some vicious body blows this year. But, there is a reassuring side to these developments. If the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will show the same guts in Anguilla as Governor Jack has shown, we may even develop some respect for that Department and its officers. That would be a new and welcome development for Anguilla.

At present, no one in Anguilla can imagine the governor pursuing allegations against any senior police officer here no matter how serious they are. The official position is that you must present “evidence” before any action will be taken. The whole point of an inquiry is that it is designed to find out if there is any evidence. After that, the law takes its course. If you already have the evidence, there is no need to hold an inquiry.

I am quite confident that no judge of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court will ever find himself in a similar position. The magistracy is a different matter. We all remember the stories that were circulating about certain magistrates over the past twenty years. Not one of them was ever charged with any offence, far less arrested. They were all allowed to quietly depart from Anguilla and all possible charges were dropped. No names will be mentioned, but all adults living in Anguilla at the time will know who I mean. Where was governor Jack when we needed him?

As usual, all parties mentioned are innocent of any crime until they are convicted by a jury of their peers, the good men and women of the Cayman Islands.