Africa-Press – Liberia. Former Chief Justice Gloria Musu Scott and three other family members have been denied bail by the Monrovia City Court. The decision was made by Stipendiary Magistrate Ben Barco, who reserved a ruling on a criminal appearance bond filed by the defendants’ lawyers on Thursday. The court determined that it lacks subject matter jurisdiction over murder, the primary charge against the defendants. As a result, the bail request was rejected, and the case will be transferred to the first judicial Circuit, Criminal Assizes ‘A’ of Montserrado County.
Gloria Musu Scott and her co-accused are currently in custody for the murder of her niece, Charloe Musu. They also face charges of criminal conspiracy and making false statements to law enforcement officers. While murder is a non-bailable offense, the defense argued that their clients should be granted bail as they are not flight risks and have cooperated with the police investigation.
However, Magistrate Ben Barco disagreed with the defense’s argument, stating that the court lacks the authority to release suspects charged with murder, as it is a capital offense. He emphasized that only a court with appropriate jurisdiction can make such a decision. The court’s jurisdiction in criminal proceedings is limited to misdemeanors, not felonious offenses like murder.
The prosecution supported the court’s decision, asserting that murder is a capital offense and therefore non-bailable. Adolphus Karnuah, a prosecution lawyer, argued that granting bail would be a violation of the constitutional provision that denies bail for capital offenses.
During the briefing proceedings, the former chief justice and her co-defendants were not present.
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