DEFIANCE?????? -Magisterial Court Denies Circuit Court Orders To Release ANC Executive

CAPITOL HILL-OCTOBER 5, 2021-WTVNEWS: The Magisterial Court has allegedly refused to honor the mandate of the Circuit Court Judge Roosevelt Willie to have Jethro Harris, an executive of the opposition Alternative National Congress (ANC) released.

Harris was recently arrested and jailed for the crime of ‘false public alarms’.

Criminal Court “A” Judge Willie in a verdict Tuesday, October 5, 2021 mandated Magistrate Jomah Jallah of the Monrovia City Court to approved the criminal appearance bail bond filed by ANC legal team to secure the release of their partisan.

But Magistrate Jallah did not adhere to the said mandate on grounds that one of the city solicitors had a personal issue with one of ANC legal counsel Cllr. Finley Karngar.

Cllr. David Wilson refused to sign the bail bond because according to him, he has a personal issue with Cllr. Karngar as such he cannot sign to release defendant Harris as per the order of the Circuit Court Judge Roosevelt Willie.

The refusal of Magistrate Jallah to sign the bond made the ANC executive spend his first night at the Monrovia Central Prison (South Beach).

In the petition for summary proceedings filed against Magistrate Jallah over his alleged refusal to approve the bail bond, Judge Willie ordered magistrate Jallah to proceed to approve the said bond based on his admission alone with human sureties since he (Jallah) claimed not to refuse to approve the bond.

When the petition for summary proceedings was called for, the petitioners (ANC Lawyers) informed the court that when their client, Jethro Harris was charged for false public alarm and false statement, a misdemeanor of the second degree and brought to court, a valid criminal appearance bond was prepared by them to secure the release of their client.

According to the ANC legal team, magistrate Jallah agreed to sign the bail bond but told them to wait until he can review same. The petitioners further stated that despite the assurance from the respondent magistrate that he would not sign and approved the bond, based on that, they were constrained to dragged magistrate Jallah on the summary.

In resistance to the said submission, magistrate Jallah told the court that he did not refuse to sign the bail bond as submitted by the petitioners but told them he needed time to consider all the conditions and be satisfied legally before approving said bail bond.

According to Magistrate Jallah, the petitioners wasted their time and energy to have dragged him before Criminal Court “A” as he did not refuse to sign the said bond.

Judge Willie concord with magistrate Jallah that he was never in the wrong to have asked the petitioners for time to considered the satisfaction of all the legal requirements and further informed them that the bond will be approved Tuesday, October 5, 2021.

The court also says based on the admission by the magistrate that he did not refuse to sign the bond but that he will require human sureties in addition to the bail bond filed, the magistrate is ordered to proceed to approve the said bond based on his own admission alone with the human sureties.

The Magistrate was further ordered in addition to the human sureties, the defendant Jethro Harris upon his release must report to the office of the magistrate police once every week to sign the attendance record so as to ensure that Harris is within the bailiwick of Liberia.

Judge willie also instructed Jallah to adjudicate or dispose of the case within a maximum period of thirty days.

On Saturday 27, 2021, suspect Jethro S.K. Harris posted on his Facebook page the photo of the late Rolisa N. Gbeintor, a Liberian and alumnae of the Len Miller High School in Sinkor, Monrovia.

Suspect Harris was forwarded to the Monrovia City Court on Monday, October 4, 2021, for onwards prosecution after being charged by the Liberia National Police with the commission of the crime of “false public alarms in violation of chapter 17, section 17.4 of the Revised Penal Law of Liberia.

The Monday Court appearance of the ANC executive drew hundreds of supporters of the ANC demanding the immediate release of their Partisan.