WESTERN BUREAU:
THE WESTMORELAND Lay Magistrates Association augmented its membership with 50 new Justices of the Peace who were sworn in at an installation ceremony at the Negril Hills Golf Club on Saturday.
"You will occupy a position of leadership and it is a challenge of our times to foster the maintenance of a wholesome social order," said Senator A.J. Nicholson, Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, while delivering the keynote address.
He urged them to take their positions of leadership seriously and to be mindful not only of their position in the justice system, but also their roles in their respective communities.
The Justices of the Peace were drawn from varied fields such as religion, education and business.
"Be a part of the teaching process in your communities to inculcate into the minds of the youth that they must aspire to be the examples you are showing," he said.
Mr. Nicholson called on the newly appointed JPs to consider his recent proposal for the establishment of a Court Security Corps to perform security duties in courthouses.
He said that it is impossible for policemen to be everywhere and cited the recent example of an intruder who entered the chambers of a judge in St. Ann and left a knife on a chair.
"I believe it (the proposed Court Security Corps) is something worth considering and we are counting on your input in the matter when the time comes," said Mr. Nicholson.
Owen Sinclair, custos of Westmoreland, congratulated the JPs on their appointment and challenged them to be forthright in conducting of their duties and to shun corruption.
In responding to the challenge on behalf of her fellow JPs, Sylvia Rickets, principal of Frome Technical, said that every effort would be made to maintain integrity and strong moral values.
"We thank the persons who recommended us, and we promise to strive for high ideals and not to put the Lay Magistrate's Association into disrepute," she said.
