Lawyers stage silent protest over mandatory gun sentences

President of the Jamaica Bar Association, Tenneshia Watkins, along with veteran attorneys Peter Champagnie and Christopher Townsend were among a group of lawyers who staged a silent protest at the Supreme Court on Wednesday over provisions of Jamaica’s firearms legislation.

“We have seen the injustices in the system and we are now here for a change. The biggest issue we have is the mandatory minimum which has taken away the discretion of the judge totally,” Watkins said.

The attorneys are protesting what they describe as the injustice of the 15-year mandatory sentence for certain firearm offences, arguing that the provision removes the discretion of judges to consider the individual circumstances of each case when imposing a sentence.