Students taken ‘to court’

Some students of the Darryl Jordan Secondary School were told, “It is always best to stay on the right side of the law”.

Magistrate Douglas Frederick sounded this advice to the senior students as they sat in on today’s sitting with their teachers in the No. 1 District ‘A Magistrates’ Court.

The Bridgetown magistrate in welcoming the students said it was a joy to host them in his courtroom, “not in the dock, but to see you as good leaders”.

Frederick said it was also his hope that their experience on observing the proceedings would help to counsel others.

“I hope that what you have learned here that you would use it to counsel others against coming here in the dock and having to face the magistrate. Having to come here and face the magistrate, first of all is a lot of time. It takes a lot of time from your productivity . . . the prosecution takes long with the files and sometime you are on remand before your matter can even be heard to see if you are guilty or not guilty
.  . . . Your mothers and fathers have to get money to get a lawyer and lawyers are not cheap,” Frederick said.

Prison he said was also not the ideal place to be as “it is going to be miserable.

“It is always best to stay on the right side of the law. So I am hopeful that what you learn here you will put it into practice against coming here . . . you will counsel other people and I am sure that at the end of this whole session you will be better for it,” the magistrate said.