The Tribune

LONG Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner has defended her plan for a 30-year minimum sentence for convicted murderers, stressing that a country led by her and running mate Dr Duane Sands would “enact tough measures” on crime while not infringing on anyone’s constitutional rights.

Mrs Butler-Turner’s “Forward Together” campaign released a statement yesterday responding to a Tribune article that featured criticism from Bar Association President Elsworth Johnson on the proposed plan.

“We welcome Bar Association President Mr Elsworth Johnson to our dialogue with the Bahamian people,” the statement said. “We regard his critical comments and push back on our tough stance on criminal sentences as a welcomed component to the spirited debate we must have if we are going to transform our criminal justice system.

“We accept Mr Johnson’s criticisms and are confident that they reflect nothing more than his years of dedicated service in the legal profession. We welcome his important voice to this dialogue. He has a lot to offer and once we emerge from convention, we will embrace him and the ideas he brings.

“To his larger point, we submit that the system is clearly broken. The Christie government - with its two national security ministers and previously two justice ministers - has proven itself to be incapable of making any meaningful progress. They don’t talk to each other and they are quick to avoid responsibility and point fingers at the judiciary rather than get to the root cause of the problem.

“Loretta Butler-Turner and Duane Sands intend to provide new leadership. Even as we embrace him and his ideas, we say in no uncertain terms that this team will represent the Bahamian people who are sick and tired of getting caught in the middle of slick lawyers and a broken system. Those who do the crime will do the time justified by those crimes. As the people’s representatives we will enact the tough measures required, while not infringing on anyone’s constitutional rights. We will not be timid about enacting tough measures that the times demand,” the statement added.

Mr Johnson told The Tribune that Mrs Butler-Turner’s call for a 30-year minimum sentence without parole for convicted murderers would infringe on the discretionary power of judges.

According to Mr Johnson, judges must maintain the ability to weigh the circumstances of all crimes. He said unique factors in each crime, even murders, allow judges to identify the mitigating circumstances of a case and rule accordingly.

“I know the saying states that a murderer is a murderer, but as it relates to the judiciary, the loss of a life as the result of the actions of someone, that can take on a number of classifications. For us to say that the pre-meditated murder of man is the same as murder perpetrated through negligence or some accidental means is for us to generalise our judicial system,” Mr Johnson said.

“I want to say this in the purest sense, I think the response to crime is as much political as it is social, economics, educational. None of these measures can resolve crime unto themselves, but politicians have forced crime into the political arena and away from the others,” he stated.

During the launch of her campaign for leader of the Free National Movement last Wednesday, Mrs Butler-Turner outlined her plans for a new Bahamas. One idea to crack down on crime was tougher sentences for convicted murderers.

Mrs Butler-Turner and Dr Sands will challenge FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis and Deputy Leader Peter Turnquest for their posts at the party’s convention at the end of this month.