Court Hears Bizarre Case Of The Crown Charging The Wrong Persons For A Planning Breach. Parties Paid Costs For The Inconvenience

By Alric Lindsay

Magistrate Hernandez heard a bizarre case today, November 12, 2024, about how the Crown charged the wrong persons for breaching a planning enforcement notice related to the building of a fence. Reportedly, it was actually the National Roads Authority (NRA) that erected the fence and allegedly breached the Development and Planning Act. 

Attorney Stacy-Ann Kelly, who represented the wrongly accused parties, read out in Court correspondence received from an NRA consultant. The consultant reportedly explained that an after-the-fact application was made to the planning authorities to approve the fence. As a result, it appears that the NRA should have been named as the defendant, not two innocent people.

Had Kelly not highlighted this fact, her clients could have been liable on summary conviction to a fine of five thousand dollars and, in the case of a continuing offence, to a further fine of one thousand dollars for every day after the first day during which the requirements of the enforcement notice remain unfulfilled.  This could be an unmanageable sum for someone of little financial means.

In the circumstances, the Crown was forced to withdraw the charges and pay $250 to the wrongly accused parties.

Stacy-Ann Kelly of Kelly Law

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