Judges find Criminal Code provision could be anti-constitutional
The Constitutional Court yesterday declared that a Criminal Code provision, empowering the Attorney General to privately consult a judge to seek a person's re-arrest, and the possibility of the continuation of the compilation of evidence and...
The Constitutional Court yesterday declared that a Criminal Code provision, empowering the Attorney General to privately consult a judge to seek a person's re-arrest, and the possibility of the continuation of the compilation of evidence and consequential indictment are likely to breach a person's right to a fair hearing.
The court, composed of Chief Justice Vincent De Gaetano, Mr Justice Joseph A. Filletti and Mr Justice Joseph D. Camilleri, gave its ruling following an appeal by Joseph Lebrun, 50, of Marsascala, who was charged with conspiring to deal in seven kilos of heroin, and importing and trafficking in the drug on and before June 6, 2005.
Mr Lebrun was the fourth man to be charged in connection with the drug find. The other three were Silvio Buttigieg, 32, of Cospicua, Angelus Vella, 52, of Cospicua and Jason Said, 32, of Fgura.
The police had used recordings of phone conversations to back up their case and following 11 court sittings, Magistrate Anthony Vella cleared Mr Lebrun on grounds that the prosecution had failed to prove his involvement to the level required by law.
The magistrate ruled that the prosecution had not drawn a link between Mr Lebrun and the mobile telephone line that had been investigated and the recorded conversations which lead to the drug find. He also decided that the prosecution had not sufficiently proven that the voice heard in the recordings belonged to Mr Lebrun.
The Attorney General resorted to a clause in the Criminal Code and sought Mr Lebrun's re-arrest so that he could face compilation proceedings. Following appeals and counter appeals, the matter ended up before the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court yesterday froze Mr Lebrun's case for three months and ruled that unless there was "no procedure of revision", the court's decision of November 2005, which had found no case against the accused, should hold.
Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg said when contacted "the sentence was being studied to see how the situation can be remedied. The court gave a three-month period within which this can be done and we will do our utmost to remedy this situation".
Lawyers Franco Debono, Josè Herrera and Joseph Giglio assisted Mr Lebrun.