The Gobat Investigation

SOME weeks ago Margaret Pratt of the UK expressed her frustrations with the lack of progress and slow pace of our justice system in relation to the murder of her husband, yachtsman Roger Pratt. Her fears seem to have been also fuelled by her knowledge of the immense backlog of criminal cases in our remand prison. But yes, many of those cases are long overdue for trial.

As if that was not enough, this week Helen Gobat spoke out on the murder of her son, Oliver, a prominent hotelier born in Saint Lucia and with British citizenship. Mrs. Gobat launched a very matter of fact summary of what she considered the many difficulties associated with her son’s murder investigation. Not least were her condemnation of crime scene procedures conducted and her thoughts on the investigative readiness of our police force and its limited capabilities for a crime of that nature. Well, arson-related homicides have been with us since the Etherington murder case in 1971 but with quite a few other unresolved ones since then, might be part basis for her conclusions.

The Pratt and Gobat murders both have tourism and British connections, a tourism market we depend on heavily. Understandably, even as both ladies may want to vent their thoughts and frustrations, the authorities must guard that such does not escalate into an open season attack on our law enforcement investigative capabilities and justice system. If we are spending millions to attract tourists to our shores it cannot be only ‘welcome to Saint Lucia’ without ensuring that provisions are made to offer the essentials of proper health services and visitor safety.

Importantly, in the event of any criminal eventuality, our investigative and prosecution services must be ready and up to par. This having been indicated, any such needs, in that regard, of our citizens and residents must also be similarly met.

So does it suggest that any family with means will have free rein to hire and bring in their own experts to manage investigations, whether criminal or forensic? This type of assistance, when needed, would be better officially sourced, channeled and handled with all of any required safeguards, and this might be reflected by the noticeable absence of visibility or statements from the authorities or police in that regard.

Interestingly, this raises the question that if deficiencies are being recognized, what then will happen to matters involving victims whose families have no financial means of securing foreign expertise? Further, one may ask what levels of forensic management are being extended to other cases in general.

However, there may be a lurking inherent danger. If any suspect(s) are developed, sufficient to be prosecuted, how will it come across in having private experts hired by the victim’s family, as key state witnesses in the prosecution of their very son’s murder trial. This observation is not to necessarily impute any professional bias on the part of those experts.

This is why the authorities have to be more circumspect in the total management of our important forensic services. This newspaper’s periodic contributor on matters forensic has continuously commented on key shortcomings in our forensic and crime scene operations and pathologist Dr. Stephen King has echoed similar concerns indicating the need for a review of such operations.

We hope that the authorities would give serious consideration to the observations of those two professionals as at this stage there should not have been cause for Mrs. Gobat to lay such fundamental criticisms at our door step.