VIDEO: PM Browne Says Parliament Toughened Gun Laws but Courts Continue to Hand Down Lenient Sentences

Prime Minister Gaston Browne has launched a blistering criticism of the judiciary over what he says are excessively lenient sentences for gun crimes, warning that the courts are undermining Parliament’s efforts to confront serious violence.

Speaking Saturday on the Browne and Browne Show, Browne said lawmakers had strengthened the law to allow prison sentences of up to 15 years for gun offences, but he could not recall anyone receiving even five years since the amendment.

“I don’t recall, since we made that amendment, that a single person has gotten as much as five years,” Browne said.

He accused the judiciary of failing to respond with sufficient severity despite the tougher penalties approved by Parliament.

“I think that the judiciary is not cooperating with the members of Parliament, the legislature, as well as the executive,” Browne said.

The prime minister said judges retain authority over sentencing and acknowledged the separation of powers, but argued that repeatedly imposing what he considers light sentences frustrates the clear policy objective behind Parliament’s decision to increase penalties.

“When you routinely, as a judiciary, give these very lenient sentences, you are trespassing on our domain,” Browne said.

He said Parliament deliberately increased penalties so people convicted of serious gun offences could be kept away from the wider community for longer periods.

Browne then issued one of his strongest criticisms of the courts, questioning how much worse the crime situation would have to become before tougher sentences are imposed.

“Are they going to wait for a crisis to happen? Are they going to wait until we lose our country?” Browne asked.

He went further, questioning whether authorities would have to wait until Antigua and Barbuda deteriorated to the level of Haiti before the issue was treated with greater urgency.

The prime minister called for longer and more punitive sentences for serious gun offences, arguing that offenders can become emboldened if they believe they will quickly return to the streets.

Browne also floated greater dialogue between the judiciary and the other branches of government on crime policy. He stressed that such discussions should not involve politicians attempting to dictate the outcome of individual cases.

The comments came amid Browne’s broader warning about a recent increase in crime and violence, which he said was serious enough for him to convene a national security meeting involving the country’s law enforcement agencies.

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