PHOTO: Judge Joe S. Barkon reading his Charge at the formal opening of the August term of court.
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
BUCHANAN, Liberia- At a well-attended formal opening ceremony of the August A.D. 2024 term of court, the resident Judge of the Second Judicial Circuit Court here, Joe S. Barkon has urged heads of the Judiciary Branch of government press for the increment of the Judiciary budget in a united front.
He expressed the hope that all the Circuit and Magisterial Courts across Liberia will really feel the impact if the increment is made, rather than stopping at the Supreme Court level.
“We want to applaud the effort, tenacity, and resilience of the Chief Justice and the Associate Justices for raising their voices so loudly in demanding increment in the budgetary appropriation made in the National budget for the Judiciary,”and it is our expectation that when the increment is made in the budget of the Judiciary, the spending impact must filter down to the Circuit and Magisterial courts, and not just the upper level of the Judiciary Judge Barkon stated.
However, this news outlet gathered that US$4m was given to the Judiciary for election special operations during the October 2023 election but said only remains at the level of the Supreme Court and no Circuit or Magisterial Courts received a cent out of that US$4m.
Some lawyers of the Grand Bassa County Bar attending the formal opening
Most often, when good will donation is done, it only remains at the Supreme Court level without reaching the Circuit and Magisterial Courts according to several judges and magistrates.
“We also wish to commend the Liberian National Bar Association (LNBA) for its statement issued to the public buttressing the effort of the Supreme Court of Liberia in calling on the Natio nal Legislature and the Executive Branch of Government “to increase the budget of the Judiciary Judge Barkon added.
“We appreciate the effort of the chief Justice and her colleagues on the Bench for such a bold step and decision to have called on the other two branches of the Government”to see reason to increase the budget of the Judiciary because the Judiciary is seriously challenged with many critical and compelling needs in administering justice throughout Liberia.
According to Judge Barkon, Research has shown that the Judiciary Currently has twenty-two (22) Circuit Courts throughout the Country plus Seventy-five (75) specialized Courts, and one hundred sixty (160) Magisterial Court as well; all of these courts contain staff and deserve adequate logistical support for dispensing justice freely and impartially.
Some magistrates
For instance, some of those specific challenges faced by the Judiciary include but not limited to the lack of basic office equipment and office supplies to some of the courts in the Country: some judges have not received assigned vehicles to enhance their job performance since their appointment for some year now, magistrates do not also have assigned vehicles, and they routinely commute on motor bikes on a daily basis to get to their assigned courts; least to say assigned motor bikes for them, while vehicles assigned to other judges have completely depreciated, thereby imposing repair cost burden on them personally in some cases when the Judiciary is constrained to underwrite the cost of repair; and these vehicles need urgent replacement.
The lack of funding to construct Judicial complexes in the other Circuit like the Second Judicial of Grand Bassa County to include the construction of magisterial courts in Grand Bassa County and other parts of the Country, for example, the Edina City Magisterial Court is conducting trial under a hut and not a court room, for which we have written authorities of the judiciary since four years ago; the lack of funding to develop the human capacity of judicial staff and lawyers, and the exposure of judges and magistrates to local and international judges training to enable them cope with some new methods and skills in handling judicial matters in this 21st century.
Your Honor, members of the Bar, and our distinguished guests, as you may be aware, the Judicial Complex that was constructed in the fourteenth Judicial Circuit, Rivercess County, the Republic of Liberia, is today being dedicated by the Chief Justice, the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of Liberia, and other officials of government in Rivercess County for the transaction of legal business.
We applaud the Judiciary for such a unique project, especially the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Liberia, His Honor Francis S. Korkpor, Sr under whose administration the project was launched.
It is our wish, desire, and aspiration that the Second Judicial Circuit of Grand Bassa County will also in the soonest of time benefit in similar form and manner from such a project, as Grand Bassa County is the mother County that gave birth to Rivercess County.
During the Term under review, the Chief Justice of the Honorable Supreme Court of Liberia, Her Honor Sie-A- Nyene G. Yuoh assigned and mandated me to have presided over the May Term of Court, A.D. 2024, and her mandate was fully executed in keeping with law; Returns made to the Chief Justice indicate therein that during the Term under review, there were (99) cases of both criminal and civil on the Court’s docket, out of which four criminal cases (4) were disposed of; two cases were disposed of from the Court’s docket with one tried on the merit through a Bench trial in which two of the three defendants in persons of Simeon S. Reeves and Lorwah R. Konah were sentenced to prison for fifteen (15) for the conviction on the charge of Armed robbery and Co-defendant Loemani Flomo was acquitted due to lack of sufficient evidence.
The other two criminal cases which were not docketed, but transferred during the term, were disposed of by motions for failure to proceed with prosecution and nolle prosequi.
Additionally, two civil cases were disposed of as well, thereby leaving the balance of eighty two (95) cases brought forward to the August Term, 2024. Moreover, one (1) case of Summary Proceedings filed against a Magistrates was disposed of and the Court also disposed of three motions and one law issues in civil cases the resident Judge indicated.
The Probate Division of the Circiut Court disposed of several matters involving Petitions for Court’s decree of letters of administration, Petitions for Court’s Decree of the sale and conveyance of land, Petitions for Court’s Decree of Guardianship, the probation of lease agreements, and other legal instruments.
Judge Barkon revealed that The Probate Division also generated the total amount of USD875.00 (EIGHT HUNDRED SEVENTY FIVE UNITED STATES DOLLARS) and LD4,875 (FOUR THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED SEVENTY FIVE LIBERIAN DOLLARS) from the probation of Title deeds, Lease Agreements, and other legal instruments.
Also collected was USD375( THREE HUNDRED SEVENTY FIVE UNITED STATES DOLLARS) as court’s fines and fees We also wish to inform you that records from the seven (7) Magisterial Courts and the Traffic Court within this Second Judicial Circuit, reveals that during their sitting in the February Term of court, 2024, there were a total of 265 Criminal cases and seventeen (17) Civil cases recorded on their dockets for the Term of Court mentioned above, and they disposed of 144 criminal cases and eleven (11) civil cases with the balance of pending cases 121 criminal cases and 6 civil cases for trial.
The total amount of fees collected from these Courts amounted to USD195.00 (ONE HUNDRED NINETY FIVE UNITED STATES DOLLARS AND LRD8,000.00 (EIGHT THOUSAND LIBERIAN DOLLARS) respectively.
In response to the Judge’s charge, the outgoing County Attorney of Grand Bassa County Cllr. Patto Jarba said, they from the Ministry of Justice are full gear to work with he Judge Barkon in prosecuting cases and filing motions where necessary.
“Even though I’m outgoing County Attorney but the Ministry of Justice has over time In memorial being challenged of having City Solicitors in most of the Magisterial Courts in Grand Bassa County “and at the end, the clerk of court in some cases has to okayed dural roles which is totally out of the law Cllr. Jarba concluded.