A government backbencher has filed a Constitutional case claiming that provisions in the Criminal Code are discriminatory.
The application, which Franco Debono filed in his capacity as a defence lawyer, follows harsh criticism he made on Monday against Justice Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici demanding that serious deficiencies in the Criminal Code be rectified.
The Constitutional case was also filed against the minister, the Attorney General and the Police Commissioner.
Dr Debono noted in the application that his client, Conrad Axisa, remained in custody since his arraignment under arrest on August 5 despite the fact that, so far, only one witness has testified. Mr Axisa is facing drug trafficking and usury charges.
Dr Debono said that the law as it stood discriminated against his client because it did not oblige the court to at least hold a sitting every 15 days. He explained that when a magistrate was presiding over a compilation of evidence (that is, hearing evidence after a person has been accused) but would not decide the case, the court was bound by law to have a hearing at least once every fortnight. But when it came to a case such as Mr Axisa’s, where the court would pass judgment, there was no time limit and a case could be put off even for months.
It was up to the Attorney General to decide whether a magistrate should decide a case or not, Dr Debono added.
Furthermore, he continued, his client had been denied bail for a second time on Monday because of the possibility of tampering with evidence. But it was Magistrate Marseann Farrugia who had declared she could not hear the main witness because that person had a pending court case. This, Dr Debono complained, effectively left his client in prison.
Bail revision was also not possible because by law his client had no right to appeal such a decision on bail, he added.
Dr Debono asked the Constitutional Court to declare that such discrimination amounted to a breach of his client’s human rights and that Mr Axisa was given an immediate and effective remedy.