Governor Sir John Vereker has begun top level talks on Bermuda's failing justice system after the collapse of the Ice Queen murder trial.

He met with Director of Public Prosecutions Khamisi Tokunbo on Wednesday to discuss why no one was convicted of the 2001 murder of Tekle Zion Mallory in the recent trial.

Deputy Governor Tim Gurney said the whole of Bermuda's justice system will be reviewed.

He said: "It's something we are looking at, particularly after the Mallory case. We are considering how best to move forward.

"The Governor is talking to various parties in the system to try to get a sense of what happened in the Tekle Mallory trial. What practices went right, what practices didn't."

Two men were charged with Mr. Mallory's murder. Everett Jahni Bean walked free after the judge deemed there to be insufficient evidence against him.

His cousin Quincy Stanley (Jimbo) Brangman, 24 was acquitted by the jury but found guilty of with wounding Mr. Mallory's friend, Lemuel Weeks on the same date at the Ice Queen.

Mr. Gurney said: "Jury trials are never the easiest to deal with. These matters are never simple when the outcome of a trial doesn't go as expected.

"There are an awful lot of parties involved, different parts of the legal system. The Police, the prosecution."

Mr. Gurney was asked if it was too easy for people to get out of jury service which left the jury pool short of intelligent members.

He said: "You will have to talk to the Chief Justice about that. It is not something the Governor is involved in.

"Something the Governor is doing is meeting the various players to get a sense of what happened."

He said the Governor would be looking at which of the recommendations which came out of the Serious Crimes Commission in 2000 had actually been implemented.

"We will check where we are, talk to the Police and the DPP to see what they have been put in place.

"Some things are in place, some are not. We need to find out why not, what the problems are.

Some recommendations are not easy.

"We are still not in a position where police can get intimate samples - i.e. blood for inquires unless some one is willing to provide them.

"That can make DNA evidence pretty difficult to get."

Yesterday Government MP Wayne Perinchief called for a standing committee of old hands to be formed to give advice after flagging up "systematic break-down" in Bermuda's law and order system.

He said: "I think we have got to start with the Police. It appears they are not getting the convictions."

He said the justice system had failed in the Ice Queen case, the Rebecca Middleton case in which no-one was convicted of the 16-year-old's 1996 rape, torture and murder and the case of Anthony Beach who was only given a two year probation order, despite admitting importing $1.7 million worth of cocaine, heroin and ecstasy, because of a change in the Island's drug laws.

"They indicate a problem somewhere in the judicial system starting with the investigation, flowing through the DPP and ending up with the court system and the judges," said Mr. Perinchief.

"Some sentences are questionable. Maybe the files are not up to scratch. We need an in-depth review.

"Are our prosecutors maybe a bit young and inexperienced? How many have long service, maybe as defence counsel? Maybe we need to bring in more counsel.

"We had some very experienced crown, within five years there has been an erosion of experience posts in the DPP's office. We don't have the experience there."

He said experience was lacking at the top in other areas including the judiciary and the Police.

"We need a review, out of this will come some answers. I am ringing the alarm.

"We might want to review the age at which officers retire."

He said it was possible now for Police officers to retire at 55 and get a pension if they hadn't reached superintendent.

"We need to look at the jury selection process to get the best people or we will get the people only left by omission. It is too easy to get out of jury service.

"It's a far reaching systematic break-down, it didn't just happen in the last couple of years. The whole criminal justice system is creaking at the seems. It needs an in depth overhaul."

He called for people who had retired from the Police, the Attorney General's chambers and the DPP's chambers to form a bi-partisan committee. "People like (former Attorney General) Saul Froomkin," suggested Mr. Perinchief.

He also called for the establishment of a drug czar, an idea tried in England, to co-ordinate drug interdiction and policy.

Asked about the Governor's intervention Opposition Legislative Affairs Spokesman John Barritt said: "I would expect that as a matter of course."

He said talks weren't enough but action had to be taken. "It's a matter of urgency. We don't want another inquiry. Look what happened with the Middleton (Serious Crimes Commission) inquiry.

"That was a fiasco."

He said recommendations from the inquiry such as abolishing the double jeopardy rule which stopped suspects being tried for the same crime twice had been voted down by the Government.

Mr. Perinchief also said the double jeopardy rule should be looked at by the new legal committee but said he had abstained in the House of Assembly vote because the Progressive Labour Party whip had been against a law change.

He said: "I declined to vote. It wasn't a vote of conscious."