II. JURISPRUDENCE

ICCPR

•          McTaggart v. Jamaica (749/1997), ICCPR, A/53/40 vol. II (31 March 1998) 221 (CCPR/C/62/D/749/1997) at para. 8.4.

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8.4. The author has claimed that he was denied a fair trial due to the extensive media coverage given to his case, which allegedly reached Canada. The Committee notes that from the material before it the coverage the case received in Canada was generated in Canada, since it referred primarily to the author having been arrested at Toronto airport trying to enter the country on false documents. Counsel has failed to provide the Committee with any material relating to media coverage in Jamaica. In the circumstances of the present case, and as far as concerns the possible effects of the media coverage of the trial, the Committee considers that there has been no violation of article 14, paragraph 1, of the Covenant.

•          Chadee et al. v. Trinidad and Tobago (813/1998), ICCPR, A/53/40 vol. II (29 July 1998) 242 (CCPR/C/63/D/813/1998) at para. 10.1.

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10.1 The authors have claimed that they did not receive a fair trial because of (a) the pre-trial publicity, and (b) the process of jury selection. The Committee notes that the pre-trial publicity was extensive, and that for this reason the State party amended the law so as to allow examination of prospective jurors by the defence with the aim of determining whether the pre-trial publicity had affected them to the extent of being biased. The jury selection occupied 14 days and the defence successfully challenged 169 potential jurors for cause. In the end, twelve jurors were sworn. The Committee is of the opinion that, in the circumstances, the State party took proper measures to prevent the pre-trial publicity from rendering the trial unfair. That not all challenges for cause by the defence were allowed does not indicate that the judge did not discharge his duty properly. With regard to the process of jury selection through conduct of a tales, the Committee refers to its jurisprudence that it is for the courts of States parties, and not for the Committee, to review the application of domestic law, unless it is evident that the application was manifestly arbitrary or amounted to a denial of justice. This not being so in the instant case, the Committee finds that the facts before it do not reveal a breach of article 14 of the Covenant.