FLASHBACK: The vandalized Harper Prison still lies in ruins
By Charles Gbayor, maorethason1997@gmail.com
HARPER, Liberia- A key part of the criminal justice system—correction and rehabilitation—has been absent in the southeastern Maryland County, which has no functional prison facility, something that has triggered serious concern by the Resident Circuit Judge.
More than one year ago in 2021, the Harper Central Prison was massively vandalized and set ablaze by an angry mob of citizens demanding speedy trial for the murder of a local commercial motorcyclist and student, Mordecial Nyemah who was killed along the Maryland-Grand Kru highway.
At the time, over 90 inmates who were placed behind bars and serving their respective jail terms for crimes they committed were set free, after the angry crowd broke into the facility in search of Moses Mlamah, who was arrested for allegedly murdering Mordercial Nyemah.
But to date, the Harper Central Prison, which used to house inmates from Grand Kru County, has not been rehabilitated. And so, people committed to jail by courts have to be sent to River Gee County.
Now, the Resident Circuit Judge of the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court in Maryland, Nelson T. Tokpa is appealing to the Liberian government through the Justice Ministry, the Supreme Court of Liberia and partners to rehabilitate the prison, in addition to the construction of a court complex.
Present court facility deplorable
Currently, the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court operates from the ground floor of the County Superintendent’s Administration Building in Harper. The facility being used by the court is deplorable condition and the environment is no longer conducive for court staff and Justice actors, according to the Judge.
Judge Tokpa said that counties like Grand Gedeh, Grand Kru, Grand Bassa, Sinoe, Gbapolu Nimba and Bong are among other counties having specially designed and built court complexes.
But unfortunately in Maryland County, its circuit court and other subordinate courts still operate from the Administration Building, which was renovated by the United Nations Development Program years ago.
Tiles on the ground floor of the Administration Building, which faded broke up from the floor have been removed and packed at the corner of the court room and no fan nor even air Conditioner
“I wish to remind and again call upon the government of Liberia through the Office if the chief Justice of the Honorable Supreme Court of Liberia to prevail on the Maryland County Legislative Caucus through its Chairman Representative Isaac Roland Blalu, that due to the lack of Court house in Maryland to host the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court and others subordinate Courts because of the current Condition of the County Administration Building ground floor, we are constrained to once again renew our appeal to the government of Liberia to Provide budgetary allotments in the National Budget for the construction of a Judicial Court Complex to host the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court and its subordinate Courts and also renovate or rehabilitate one of government biggest Prison facilities in Liberia (Harper Central Prison),” Judge Tokpa asserted.
During the opening of the August A.D term of court, several speakers also called on the Liberian government headed by President George Manneh Weah to immediately renovate the Harper Central Prison.
Cllr. Topka noted that it is the obligation of the Liberian government to construct Court complex in each of the fifteenth counties and Maryland been one of the first five (5) original counties, by law and equity deserves Judicial Court Complex as it has been done in other counties.
The www.newspublictrust.com has gathered that since angry crowd set ablaze the only Prison facility in the county, the commission of crime has increased, and those taking their cases to court will have to transport those who are found guilty to River Gee County or to the National Correction Palace in Grand Gedeh County to serve their prison sentence.
It is said that some party litigants with such cases have to spend up to over twenty thousand Liberians dollars, that’s well over US$150.00.