CCB’s Walrond on expediting child abuse matters

LEGAL Advisor for the Child Care Board, Beverley Walrond, wants to see child abuse cases move expeditiously through the justice system.

“I use this opportunity to bring to the table, and once again issue a call for all cases concerning a child complainant in sexual abuse matters, particularly, to be heard within a reasonable time.

“When these cases are delayed, often for years, those children are re-victimised by not being able to put the matter behind them, and by having to rehash the  facts many years later,” she insisted.

Walrond pointed out that there were cases where young children were sexually abused by adults, and after subsequent adjournments and years passing, these minors were unable to give the necessary details and the matters had to be dismissed.

Highlighting one such matter with a seven-year old girl, she explained, “When the time came two years after, and they started to cross-examine this little infant, who by that time could not tell anybody about date, time, even year that this had happened... it was dismissed at this point.”

At the time, she was presenting on the topic, ‘The Legal Considerations/Responses in Managing Child Abuse’, while speaking at a Child Abuse Management Workshop, hosted by the Child Care Board in collaboration with the United Children’s Fund, at the Savannah Beach Hotel.

Speaking on the delays, which in some cases related to the fact that preliminary inquiries took a very long time, the Queen’s Counsel urged the Royal Barbados Police Force, “that everything be done to front load these cases”.

Remaining firm on the stance of confidentiality for children who have been abused, she also asked media practitioners to refrain from publishing any details that would allow members of the public to identify the minor. (JMB)