By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Chief Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

LAWYERS for Jean Rony Jean-Charles are seeking constitutional relief over his re-arrest and detention over the weekend, and have asked the court to commit executive members of government to prison for contempt.

The notice of motion argues the re-arrest was unlawful and a violation of Supreme Court Justice Gregory Hilton’s ruling ordering the government to facilitate Mr Jean-Charles’ return, despite the emergency stay granted while he was already en route to the country.

It further claims that respondents – the attorney general, minister of immigration, director of immigration, superintendent of the Carmichael Road Detention Centre, and commodore of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force – failed to make a full and frank disclosure to the court or provide Mr Jean-Charles with any evidence or submissions made to the court to support the stay order.

In response, Attorney General Carl Bethel told the media yesterday the government would not be “rolled over by a hastily filed and served action,” noting this motion will be heard separately from the stay application hearing set for tomorrow.

Mr Bethel said: “Let me say that in the initial (Mr Jean-Charles) matter, the court allowed a last-minute constitutional motion to be tacked on to an application that was existing, that was bound to fail. We are not allowing that to happen this time, we made it clear to his lordship, his lordship has agreed, he is dealing with what is before him now and any constitutional issue that Mr Smith may happen to want to raise, which is his habitual method of operating, will have to stand or fall on its own merits in a separate hearing and a separate application.

“In that matter we will fully defend the position and actions of the government and we will not be rolled over with some hastily filed and served action on the day. We objected to it, it’s not before the court, Mr Smith can file whatever he wants to and we will see how that stands up when the substantial hearing on that application is made.”

The government has appealed the Supreme Court ruling, and was granted a temporary emergency stay that led to Mr Jean-Charles’ arrest and detention over the weekend when he returned to the country after being deported to Haiti last year.

His lawyers have objected to his arrest as a breach of the initial ruling that could not be halted by the stay, as it had already been effected.

The stay application hearing began on Monday, but was adjourned until tomorrow at 10am.

The notice of motion seeks an order that the government pay Mr Jean-Charles aggravated, exemplary and punitive damages, declaring that the respondents’ actions were “unlawful and egregious abuses of Executive power and contempt”.