By Sasha L. Lightbourne
Incoming Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Vinette Graham-Allen is reconsidering her recent appointment in light of the firestorm of controversy surrounding the top post, the Journal can confirm.
Well-placed sources close to the incoming director told the Journal yesterday that Mrs. Graham-Allen does not want to come "into a wasp nest."
Sources have also confirmed that the Jamaican attorney will give the position some more thought.
In the meantime, she is said to be looking at other opportunities in Jamaica.
Controversy erupted after former Deputy DPP Cheryl Grant-Bethell was sidestepped for the post. Many assumed that she would fill the position after her former boss, Bernard Turner, stepped down last October to become a Supreme Court judge.
Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham said he initially supported Mrs. Grant-Bethell for the top post but later withdrew that support for "good and valid reasons."
The veteran prosecutor has since filed an application for judicial review in the Supreme Court to review her application and interview process.
Meanwhile, sources said that Mrs. Graham-Allen, who visited the country earlier this year, was only interviewed by the prime minister and Chief Justice, Sir Michael Barnett.
She reportedly never met the other members of the Judicial and Legal Services Commission (JLSC), which is responsible for all judicial and legal appointments in the country.
The Committee for Justice and Empowerment of Bahamians also recently expressed disappointment over Mrs. Grant-Bethell being sidestepped for the top post.
In fact, the group wrote Mrs. Graham-Allen to apprise her of the controversy and asked her to turn down the position.
But, Attorney General, John Delaney told the Journal yesterday that he expects the new DPP to arrive in the country as early as next week.
"Her first order of business will obviously be to meet with me and with her senior managers," he said.
"She will also meet with the new deputies and also the department as a whole. We also hope that she can start reviewing and implementing appropriate policies to improve the court system."
The attorney general said he hopes Mrs. Graham-Allen will also make herself familiar with the challenges of the department.
Mrs. Grant-Bethell, who originally worked out of the Attorney General’s Office in the East Hill Street Post Office, has since moved into her new office in the British American Bank building on King Street.
She now serves as deputy law reform commissioner
"I hope that her future is one where she serves well in that capacity," Mr. Delaney said.
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