The Cayman Islands Legislative Assembly has several bills outstanding as lawmakers head into the latest meeting of the 2013/14 budget year Wednesday.
Premier Alden McLaughlin’s office did not respond directly to questions from the Caymanian Compass regarding what matters would come before the assembly during this week’s meeting.
However, a few major legislative issues have been gazetted – made public – within the past months and would be eligible for consideration lawmakers.
Public standards bill
Legislation changing the way public officers conduct daily business will be brought to the Legislative Assembly Wednesday, according to a statement released by Premier McLaughlin, in the form of the Standards in Public Life Bill.
The outgoing chairman of the Commission for Standards in Public Life, Karin Thompson, who has led the commission for the past four years, has said the chances of the commission having significant investigative resources in the current financial climate were “bleak.”
The government released the proposed Standards in Public Life Bill in October, nearly four years after the creation of a constitutional commission that was supposed to be policing public officials’ actions, but which had no legal teeth to do so.
The bill seeks mandatory disclosure of a conflict of interest with respect to “any matter that comes up for discussion” as soon as the matter appears on an agenda for any public meeting.
The proposal also requires “a person in public life,” within 90 days of assuming the functions of office, to make a declaration to the commission of income, assets and liabilities during the previous year. For a candidate seeking election, the declaration should be made before the person files nomination papers. After the first declaration, no later than June 30 of each year, the declaration must be updated, according to the bill.
Police Bill
Depending on what lawmakers decide, police would be able to hold criminal suspects only for 48 hours without criminal charges being filed, unless a court intervenes and extends the time of custody.
Changes to the Police Law (2010 Revision) are proposed in amendments necessitated by a 2013 court ruling that found the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service had detained a drug suspect for too long before bringing him before a court.
The suspect in the case was held for six days, five hours and 30 minutes. Grand Court Justice Alex Henderson ruled that the man had been unlawfully detained for part of that time.
According to the Police (Amendment) Bill, 2014, a police custody officer – who cannot be directly involved in the criminal investigation that led to the arrest – can authorize the detention of a person without criminal charges for up to 48 hours from the time of the arrest.
The bill states that an RCIPS officer with a minimum rank of superintendent may authorize a prisoner’s detention without charge for up to 72 hours if the continued detention is needed to preserve evidence in the case, collect evidence or carry out investigations. In that case, an application must be made to Summary Court for further detention of the person for “not more than 72 hours.”
Firearms Bill
A Firearms (Amendment) Bill that sets additional penalties for possessing a homemade firearm and for “handling” a firearm or bullet-proof vest could also come up for consideration after being reviewed in draft form last year.
The proposal, which contains some slight revisions to a plan released two years ago, still contains provisions for warrantless firearms searches by police based on “reasonable suspicion” and seeks to reverse the burden of proof in firearms possession cases.
In addition, the amendment bill would allow individuals to be detained by police on suspicion of violating the Firearms Law, or any other criminal offense involving the use of a firearm, for up to 20 days without criminal charges being filed.
Related Videos
