The jailing of two men for breach of protection orders may result in very little to stem the tide of domestic violence against women.
Head of the Victim and Witness Support Unit Margaret Sampson-Browne, who commended Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers Caesar for making such a decision, said other magistrates must follow suit.
On Tuesday, Ayers-Caesar sentenced two men for breaching protection orders brought against them by their respective companions.
Keston Herbert collapsed in court and had to be helped by police officers to stand after being sentenced to a total of 78 months in jail for breaching the order on three separate occasions.
However, Herbert will only serve 36 months as the sentences will run concurrently.
Corwin Floyd, of Factory Road, Diego Martin, who pleaded guilty to breaching the order was slapped with three months hard labour.
In sentencing the perpetrators Ayers-Caesar said a message needed to be sent to others who believed protection orders were just pieces of paper and were trivial.
But on whether this would actually serve as a deterrent Sampson-Browne said: “I don’t think so. Many women have died after they took out a protection order.
“But men must not go away with the idea, ‘She apply for a protection order but the magistrate would not do anything.’ If the magistrates are consistent, they get their information, if the police do their work...I really believe we would see a reduction in domestic violence,” Sampson-Browne said.
Saying there has not been many instances where cases of breaches have been addressed by magistrates, Sampson-Browne added: “Many people who have applied for protection orders...when there are breaches the police will tell them go to the JP and so on.
“But there has to be a very strong message and I am hoping that magistrates really understand the kind of risks women put themselves through when they apply for the protection order and they trust that the law would protect them.
“The process must be a complete one and when the person breaches it that person must feel the full brunt of the law.”
On whether magistrates have been too lenient regarding the issue she said the Judiciary must work hand-in-hand with the police.
“The magistrates could only deal with the evidence that comes before them so there must be an aggression of police officers addressing the issue of breach of protection orders...the police must take them before the magistrate and they should be dealt with, Sampson-Browne said.
Asked if the police were doing enough to ensure perpetrators who broke orders were hauled before the courts, Sampson-Browne said training for officers has been ongoing and some 700 officers have been trained already by the Victim and Witness Support Unit.
“But that is still not sufficient. Once information comes to the police they must deal with it effectively,” Sampson-Browne urged.
Activist Diana Mahabir-Wyatt said there was little attention being paid to the breaching of protection orders and many families have suffered as a result.
But she commended Ayers-Caesar for her stance.
On whether she believed this would actually act as a deterrent Mahabir-Wyatt said: “I don’t know but I am hoping it will.
“We have a whole cultural shift that has to be made but this is at least an acknowledgement on the part of court that the implementation of the law is necessary in order to move forward.”
Regarding the police she said in many cases they were aware that an order was broken but still refused to refer the matter to the court.