The Executive Director, Legal Aid Board Sierra Leone, Mrs. Fatmata Claire Carlton-Hanciles, has held a very meaningful meeting with the Council of Tribal Heads in Sierra Leone.

The Executive Director, Legal Aid Board Sierra Leone, Mrs. Fatmata Claire Carlton-Hanciles, has held a very meaningful meeting with the Council of Tribal Heads in Sierra Leone. She noted that justice was not prevalent at the lower class in Sierra Leone and pointed out that most of the witnesses do not appear in the courts when cases are called. That, she said, has kept a lot of innocent people in jails without trial, thereby destroying their lives.

The meeting witnessed the processing of seven youths released from different courts in Freetown. Six youths who were held for different crimes, ranging from wounding to larceny, were released at the High Court by Justice Sam Margai. Five were released on an application for a discharge for want of prosecution by Legal Aid Lawyers, Cecelia Tucker and Contract Lawyer who applied for the sixth one. A seventh was released by Justice Samba on an application for a discharge for want of prosecution made by Legal Aid Lawyer, Cheryl Blake.

Tribal Heads advised the seven released youths who were of the different tribes, to be sober minded. They observed that four of the released youths were charged with wounding, an observation which called for concern. On the issue of the Lawyer-Tribal Head relationship, Chief Matthew Younge said that Lawyers do not recognize them as partners in the Justice system in the area of Local Justice Dispensation. They called on the Legal Aid Board to bridge the gap between the two parties for the improvement of the justice system in Sierra Leone. The tribal heads commended the Legal Aid boss for the achievements the Board has made in the last four months, and pledged their total support for the work of the Board.

By: Derek Nat-George

Date: 15-02-16

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