CoP ordered to give Sat's station search warrant

A High Court judge has given Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith seven days to provide a copy of the search warrant police said they relied on to search the offices of Central Broadcasting Services Ltd (CBSL) – the parent company of Radio and TV Jaagriti.

Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh gave the order on Wednesday in a judgment delivered at the Hall of Justice in Port of Spain.

He also declared that the failure to provide a copy of the warrant to CBSL was “unlawful.”

He said scrutiny of the process by which a warrant has been obtained, and the manner in which it is executed was an important safeguard for the citizens in a democratic State, while recognising that any incursion on the rights of citizens must be carefully measured and proportionate to the circumstances.

“It may not be appropriate in all circumstances where for example there is some strong public interest element that justifies confidentiality or where it may be necessary to protect the safety of witnesses.

“The court has to look at the circumstances of the case presented when a request is made,” Boodoosingh said.

In the case of CBSL, he pointed out the supposed offence which led to the warrant being executed at the television and radio station “concerned words spoken.” Boodoosingh pointed out there were rights to freedom of speech and expression and to operate a free media, subject to necessary regulations.

“This is not a case of a gangland murder or some circumstance where sensitive information may be involved. It concerns utterances made in the public sphere,” he said.

“Further in a democratic state, the search of a media house can have a chilling effect on society. The power of search can be used for an illegitimate purpose of intimidating or silencing critics including invading the privacy of individuals who are present or employed at the media house.

“A free media operating in an environment which is free from harassment and intimidation is as fundamental to a democratic society as a free and independent Judiciary,” the judge said.

He also urged the authorities to update the laws, policies and police Standing Orders to give effect to changes to facilitate the provision of a copy of a search warrant in the usual course of search, except where it is necessary to withhold it because of sensitive information.

He also advocated for additional reforms to the law relating to search warrants to be more consistent with the observance of human rights while providing an effective balance with the need for proper investigation of crime.

In its lawsuit, CBSL’s attorneys Jagdeo Singh, Dinesh Rambally, Kiel Taklalsingh and Stefan Ramkissoon accused the police of engaging in oppressive and high-handed execution of the search warrant in April and June.

The claim says the party of police, led by Insp Stanley, when they raided CBSL’s offices, waved a document claiming they had a search warrant to seize audiovisual footage. The lawsuit said at no time did Stanley or any of the officers say on what basis the warrant was issued, and requests by the station’s attorneys for a copy of the warrant, at the time of the search were denied.

The claim also said audiovisual footage was taken by police, and the station’s staff were courteous to the police, but were not shown the warrant to properly verify what was told to them by the officers.

The station also said its staff wrote to the commissioner seeking a copy of the warrant, but was told by the police director of legal services that neither the police’s standing orders nor the law required a copy of the warrant to be disclosed and it would only become disclosable in legal proceedings.

Police visited the station with a warrant under section 13 of the Sedition Act requesting recordings from April 16.

The action came days after a clip of Maha Sabha secretary general Sat Maharaj made disparaging comments on TV Jaagriti about Tobagonians. In the clip, which went viral on social media, Maharaj described Tobagonians as lazy people, more interested in racing crabs and goats and targeting white women to rob and rape them.

The station was also sanctioned by the Telecommunications Authority (TATT), finding the statements made by Maharaj to be “divisive and inciteful.” Legal proceedings have also been initiated against the authority.

The Commissioner was unrepresented at the trial of the matter although his office and the Solicitor General's department had been served with the legal action. The Commissioner was ordered to pay CBSL's costs.