The Supreme Court has condemned the protest attack on the home of the Resident Judge of Grand Gedeh County, George S. Wiles, Jr., intending to cause harm to persons living within the house, and damage to property.
On Wednesday, December 13, some citizens of Grand Gedeh County staged a protest action at the home of Judge Wiles, demanding the unconditional release
from detention of their kinsmen (defendants) who are facing trial for multiple criminal offenses.
The Supreme Court noted that the action of the protesters endangered the lives of the Judge and his family; undermining the importance of upholding the rule of law and maintaining the independence, neutrality, and integrity of the courts.
The Court emphasizes the need for citizens of Grand Gedeh, and Liberia in general, to be accountable for their actions and to seek redress through lawful means.
Cognizant of the fact that opinions/rulings of the courts on a particular matter may or may not appease a particular party, the court will never and can never adjudicate a matter brought before it based on sentiments, desires, whims, or caprices of a contending party or the public, but rather based on the fundamental principles of the Liberian Constitution and the relevant laws controlling it.
Therefore, the court cannot be, and will not be, coerced or intimidated to render a decision in a matter brought before it based on the sentiments of the parties or the public, as such will defeat the tenets of justice and erode the very foundation of Liberia’s democracy.
It can be recalled that last year, the Supreme Court of Liberia held seven local officials of Bong County in Criminal Contempt of the Court for vandalizing the Magisterial Courts in Salala, Bong Mines, and Gbartala, and subjecting a magistrate to physical humiliation. As the result of these “wrongdoing and dreadful acts”, the Supreme Court sentenced them to six months’ imprisonment at the Monrovia Central Prison, as a deterrent and as a means to protect the sanctity of the Liberian Judiciary.
The Court called on all citizens and residents of Liberia to respect and adhere to the rule of law and to desist from any act that tends to undermine the administration of fair and impartial justice.
