The legal question that had put a commission of inquiry into the Joy St Omer case on hold appears to have been cleared, with the Government now preparing to move ahead with the process.
Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre on Monday said the Attorney General has advised that an inquiry can go ahead if “certain conditions” are met.
It follows a formal request from St Omer’s family to the Prime Minister and Cabinet for an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding her death.
The Cabinet did not agree to the request right away. Since there are already criminal proceedings related to St Omer’s death, the Government wanted legal advice to make sure an inquiry would not interfere with the case.
At a pre-Cabinet press briefing, the Prime Minister said the Cabinet has now received the advice it was waiting for from the Attorney General. The next step is to plan the inquiry based on that advice.
The Attorney General is now working on the terms of reference, which will spell out the scope of the inquiry and incorporate the conditions under which it can proceed. Cabinet will then advise the Governor General to officially set up the inquiry.
Pierre also defended the decision to wait for legal guidance before acting on the family’s request.
“The decisions I take have far-reaching effects; before I take any decision, I always seek opinions,” he said.
This development brings the St Omer family closer to the independent inquiry they have been seeking, though the terms of reference will decide what the commission can actually look into.
Any third-party or user posts, comments, replies, and third-party entries published on the St. Lucia Times website (https://stluciatimes.com) in no way convey the thoughts, sentiments or intents of St. Lucia Times, the author of any said article or post, the website, or the business. St. Lucia Times is not responsible or liable for, and does not endorse, any comments or replies posted by users and third parties, and especially the content therein and whether it is accurate.
St. Lucia Times reserves the right to remove, screen, edit, or reinstate content posted by third parties on this website or any other online platform owned by St. Lucia Times (this includes the said user posts, comments, replies, and third-party entries) at our sole discretion for any reason or no reason, and without notice to you, or any user. For example, we may remove a comment or reply if we believe it violates any part of the St. Lucia Criminal Code, particularly section 313 which pertains to the offence of Libel. Except as required by law, we have no obligation to retain or provide you with copies of any content you as a user may post, or any other post or reply made by any third-party on this website or any other online platform owned by St. Lucia Times. All third-parties and users agree that this is a public forum, and we do not guarantee any confidentiality with respect to any content you as a user may post, or any other post or reply made by any third-party on this website. Any posts made and information disclosed by you is at your own risk.
