April 18 is the new date that former police commissioner turned attorney
Wendel Robinson and the Police Service Commission (PSC) will return to
court.
Whether or not the case will be retried, depends on if settlement discussions
between Robinson and the PSC conclude amicably.
It was due to those settlement discussions why the matter was adjourned on
Tuesday. They will report to Justice Jan Drysdale, upon its conclusion.
Robinson has been fighting this legal battle for quite some time, claiming that
not only did his firing infringe upon his constitutional rights, but that it was
unlawful to strip him of his pension and gratuity.
A High Court ruling in 2018 seemed to agree with him and ordered that he be
reinstated as the police commissioner and awarded cost after he was suspended
months earlier, amid allegations of misconduct. He was later served with
disciplinary charges.
But the PSC took a different route and suspended Robinson again, on the basis
that he was still facing the charges. He was subsequently terminated in
November 2019.
Once again, Robinson took them to court and in 2021, Justice Ann Marie Smith
ruled that the appointment of the current police commissioner was “unlawful,
ultra vires, null and void” meaning that Robinson’s termination was in fact
illegitimate, leaving many in the public to ponder whether any guilty
convictions and arrests made under Rodney’s tenure were valid.
The PSC did, however, appeal the ruling which was overruled in 2022.
Now, Robinson is back before the court representing himself. He is also
challenging his second suspension in a trial on May 16. The commission is
being represented by Attorney David Dorsette.
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