Police Commissioner Gary Griffith is being sued. Not for any wrongdoing on his part, but for the failure of an officer to appear before the courts on eight occasions.
Griffith is being sued by Maureen Dilchan Maharajh, whose husband was killed on August 15, 2011, in a head-on collision in Manzanilla.
The man driving the vehicle was charged with causing death by dangerous driving, but six years later he was discharged.
Maharajh’s lawsuit says that Corporal Dindial Joseph was assigned to the case against the man charged with causing her husband’s death, but because he failed to go to court eight times, the magistrate dismissed the matter.
Disciplinary proceedings against Joseph were also dismissed then.
Maharajh now wants the High Court to order the Police Commissioner to reinstate disciplinary proceedings against the Corporal for not attending court.
She has information from the court that shows the case had been called 12 times and Joseph was absent on eight of those occasions.
At the 11th hearing, when the court fixed the matter for trial, Joseph was again absent and no prosecution witnesses were present, leading the magistrate to dismiss the matter.
Maharaj is being represented by Senior Counsel Anand Ramlogan, Jayanti Lutchmedial, Renuka Rambhajan, Alvin Pariagsingh and Alana Rambarran.
They contend that the commissioner’s decision to discontinue disciplinary proceedings against Joseph is irrational, as it was premised on a misconception that he only failed to attend court on one day, for which he had a sick leave certificate, that resulted in the dismissal of the case
Maharajh wants the disciplinary proceedings against Joseph reinstated because of the need for justice to be served.
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