Paula Llewellyn

Last updated

Paula Vanessa Llewellyn CD KC is a Jamaican lawyer who serves as the country's director of public prosecutions (DPP), 2008 - 2024. She is the first woman to hold the position.

Contents

Early life

Llewellyn was born at the Victoria Jubilee Hospital in Kingston, one of the four children of Mavis and Clinton Llewellyn; her mother was a nurse and her father was a realtor. She grew up in Pembroke Hall, a suburb in Kingston's north, attending St. George's Primary School and St. Hugh's High School. Llewellyn went on to the University of the West Indies at Mona, attending the Norman Manley Law School. [1] She did her internship in Antigua, but returned to Jamaica to take up a position as court clerk at the Saint James Parish magistrate's court, based out of Montego Bay. In 1986, Llewellyn became a crown counsel in the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP). She was made a deputy director in 1993, and senior deputy director in 1999. [2]

Director of Public Prosecutions

In March 2008, Llewellyn was appointed director of public prosecutions – the first woman to hold the position. [3] Unlike previous DPPs, who had been appointed simply on the recommendation of the prime minister, she had to apply through a competitive selection process administered by the Public Service Commission. Notable cases the ODPP has been involved with during her tenure include the murder trial of Vybz Kartel, the extradition of Christopher Coke, and bribery charges against Trafigura Beheer. [4] She received death threats over the Kartel case, and was under police protection for a period. [5] Llewellyn oversaw the publication of Jamaica's first Manual for Prosecutors in 2016, a "compilation of directives and guidelines that provide clear instruction and guidance to Jamaican prosecutors" based on similar publications in the UK and Canada. [6] She has frequently criticised the Jamaican government for underresourcing her office and the justice system as a whole. [7] [8] Jamaica’s first woman Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Paula Llewellyn walked away from the job Sunday, April 21, 2024, 16 years after marching spectacularly into history, unable to survive the latest legal skirmish that had its genesis in parliamentary anguish.

Related Research Articles

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is the office or official charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world. The title is used mainly in jurisdictions that are or have been members of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Crown prosecutors are the public prosecutors in the legal system of Australia. In Western Australia, they are referred to as State prosecutors.

Carolyn Cooper CD is a Jamaican author, essayist and literary scholar. She is a former professor of Literary and Cultural Studies at the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica. From 1975 to 1980, she was an assistant professor at Atlantic Union College in South Lancaster, Massachusetts. In 1980, she was appointed as a lecturer in the Department of Literatures in English at the University of the West Indies (UWI), where she continued to work until her retirement as a professor in 2017. Also a newspaper journalist, Cooper writes a weekly column for the Sunday Gleaner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Director of Public Prosecutions (Fiji)</span>

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) Fiji is an independent office by virtue of section 117 of the 2013 Constitution of Fiji. The ODPP is motivated by the principle that it is in the interest of justice that the guilty be brought to justice and the innocent are not wrongly convicted.

Leanne Clare is a Judge of the District Court of Queensland and a former Queensland Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). On 2 April 2008 she was appointed to the District Court after eight years as DPP. Between 1999 and 2000 she served as an acting judge at Ipswich District Court.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vybz Kartel</span> Jamaican dancehall deejay

Adidja Azim Palmer, better known as Vybz Kartel, is a Jamaican dancehall deejay. Among his various nicknames, he is referred to as Worl' Boss or Teacha. As summarized by Rolling Stone, he "attained folk-hero status in Jamaica with provocative lyrics, and a mischievous public persona", and "few have captivated [the dancehall] audience – or offended the sensibilities of its detractors – as consistently and thoroughly as Kartel."

Kirk Brian Anderson is a Caribbean jurist. A dual national of Jamaica and Belize, he has experience both before the bench and behind it, in Belize as Director of Public Prosecutions and in Jamaica as a justice of the Supreme Court, and in both countries as a lawyer in private practice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Director of Public Prosecutions of Kenya</span>

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) is the National Prosecuting Authority in the Republic of Kenya as established by the Constitution of Kenya, which de-linked it from the Office of the Attorney General and established it as an independent office. The office is empowered with the authority to exercise the State's powers of prosecution with regard to criminal proceedings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alison Saunders</span> British barrister

Dame Alison Margaret Saunders, is a British barrister and a former Director of Public Prosecutions. She was the first lawyer from within the Crown Prosecution Service and the second woman to hold the appointment. She was also the second holder of this office not to be a Queen's Counsel. She was previously the Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS London. Her term of office ended on 31 October 2018. She is now a Partner at the Magic Circle law firm Linklaters.

The New South Wales Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) is an independent prosecuting service and government agency within the portfolio of the Attorney General of New South Wales. Of all prosecuting services in Australia, the ODPP has the largest caseload, staff, and budget.

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in the Republic of Ireland. It is led by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spice (musician)</span> Jamaican dancehall deejay (born 1982)

Grace Latoya Hamilton, known professionally as Spice, is a Jamaican dancehall deejay and singer. Known as the Queen of Dancehall, Spice is recognised as one of the most prominent dancehall artists in the world. She is known for her aggressive flow, musical versatility and outspoken lyrics. Spice first gained recognition after performing at the annual dancehall festival Sting in 2000. She released her first single "Complain" for record producer Dave Kelly's Madhouse Records in 2003. She continued to release the singles "Right There" and "Hype", even being featured on songs with Jimmy Cliff and Beenie Man in 2004 and 2006, respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Morris Knibb</span>

Mary Morris Knibb, MBE was a Jamaican teacher, social reformer and philanthropist. She founded the Morris Knibb Preparatory School and donated a building which is used as the headquarters of the Moravian Church in Jamaica as well as land for construction of a community center. Morris Knibb was a women's rights activist and the first elected councilwomen in Jamaica. She was the first woman to vie for a seat in the House when Universal Suffrage was granted to all Jamaicans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sylvia Judith Bertrand</span> Dominican civil servant

Sylvia Judith Bertrand was a Dominican civil servant who went on to earn a law degree in Dominica and serve as the Director of Public Prosecution. She served as Solicitor General for Dominica and later as High Court Judge for Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the British Virgin Islands on the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court.

Shirley Miller is a Jamaican attorney and one of the first women admitted as Queen's Counsel in the Caribbean. Admitted to the inner bar in 1971, she became the first Queen's Counsel in Jamaica and has served in numerous capacities, including as head of the Legal Reform Department and on the Electoral Advisory Committee. She served on a committee of three to review Jamaica's Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms and was honored as a commander in the Order of Distinction, as well as receiving the Order of Jamaica for her contributions to legal reform.

Jevene Bent is a former Jamaican police officer who was deputy commissioner of the Jamaica Constabulary Force from 2003 to 2013, the first woman to hold this rank. She later served as Commissioner of Corrections from 2013 to 2014.

Barbara Joy Gloudon was a Jamaican writer. She received two Seprod Awards from the Press Association of Jamaica and Order of Distinction. Gloudon was a scriptwriter for Jamaica's Little Theatre Movement (LTM) and wrote radio drama. She hosted a radio talk show for thirty years and became chair of the LTM. She was granted the Order of Jamaica in 1992 and became a fellow of the Institute of Jamaica in 2012.

Claire Loftus is an Irish solicitor and civil servant who was the Director of Public Prosecutions between 2011 and 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noordin Haji</span> Kenya law officer (born 1973)

Noordin Mohamed Haji, OGW, CBS is a Kenyan advocate of the High Court of Kenya, a position he has held for the last 21 years and the current Director-General of the National Intelligence Service. He was the second Director of Public Prosecutions after the promulgation of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, which made the Office an independent entity from the Attorney General's Office, which it had been previously under.

Alice Komuhangi Khaukha is a Ugandan Lawyer and Judge that has made contributions to the Ugandan legal system. She has held various positions within the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) and recently became a High Court Judge for international Crimes Division as the Focal Judge for SGBV.

References

  1. ↑ Jamaica's first female DPP a woman of courage under fire , Jamaica Observer, 19 March 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  2. ↑ Paula Llewellyn - A maverick in the legal profession, Jamaica Gleaner, 28 August 2005. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  3. ↑ Jamaica's first woman DPP - Paula Llewellyn creates history, Jamaica Gleaner, 5 March 2008. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  4. ↑ Paula Llewellyn: 'Kartel', 'Dudus', OCG, Richard Azan, Trafigura, Jamaica Observer, 23 March 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  5. ↑ DPP, prosecution team get death threats over Kartel verdict, Jamaica Observer, 3 April 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  6. ↑ Ms Paula Llewellyn’s certain legacy, Jamaica Observer , 27 January 2016. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  7. ↑ 'I'm frustrated!', Jamaica Observer, 19 September 2017. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  8. ↑ DPP slaps successive gov'ts for justice system neglect, Jamaica Observer, 19 October 2017. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.