People working in court, including the prosecution, have to be careful about the way citations and charge sheets are issued so as to ensure that no mistakes are made, President George Abela said this morning.
Speaking during the swearing in of judges Jacqueline Padovani and Robert Mangion, Dr Abela said that if mistakes were made someone had to take responsibility.
He urged care in the way citations and charge sheets were drawn up saying that it was important that the right time and place were listed.
In two recent cases, two people, a former priest and a police officer, were found not guilty of crimes they were accused of, because of mistakes in the charge sheets.
Dr Abela also pointed out that it was important for the public not to compare or comment frivolously on judgements given in court. Judges, he said, took their decisions based on the facts they had before them.
He said that the judiciary was an important and strong pillar in the country's democracy. He also said that it was not easy for the executive to choose someone to form part of the judiciary and a lot of criteria, including behaviour, had to be taken into consideration.
The executive scrutinised candidates for the judiciary accurately so as not to make mistakes
On Madam Justice Jacqueline Padovani, Dr Abela pointed out that as magistrate for many years, she took decisions which affected society. Mr Justice Mangion spent many years working as a lawyer and specialised in mediation, a sector that still needed to be strengthened.
Dr Padovani, who was the first woman to be appointed magistrate in Malta, said that this was a historic moment in her life. She thanked her parents and said she had arrived to this point in her life through the great support and love of her family and friends especially her mother, husband and daughter.
A former president of the Chamber of Advocates, Mr Justice Mangion also thanked his family and friends and said that this was a new chapter in his life where he would be of service to those who sought justice in court.