Attorney General Sen. Larry Mussenden?s announcement on Friday that he has formed a committee to review the criminal justice system will be welcomed by many people.

As a new appointee, it makes sense that Sen. Mussenden would want to take a fresh look at the Island?s justice system, especially given the level of criticism that has been directed towards it in recent years.

And in appointing members to the committee from the Department of Public Prosecutions, former Attorneys General, Parliamentary draftsmen and members of the defence Bar as well as Puisne Judge Norma Wade Miller as chairwoman and Puisne Judge Ian Kawaley, the committee does cover most areas .

It is surprising, however, that neither the Police ? who are expected to gather most of the evidence for criminal prosecutions ? nor the Prisons Service ? who must deal with the effects of the courts? decisions ? are unrepresented. Given that cases fall apart due to poor evidence gathering in some cases, and that there has been so much emphasis on rehabilitation in recent years, it is strange that Sen. Mussenden has restricted membership of the committee to lawyers. It would have been worth having a representative of victims of crime on board as well.

Sen. Mussenden has promised a quick review, which is to be welcomed, since many of the solutions to civil and criminal trial delays are well known. Having the Police record witness statements via tape or video and having a proper court recording system would reduce many of the delays in the system now. That?s no secret. What has been missing is the will and the money to implement them and it is not clear how another review will help.

Other ideas, like a commercial court, a court to deal with people who are mentally ill and a public defenders? office, do need deeper exploration. These are relatively new ideas for Bermuda. All will require more judges, more facilities and the like. Whether Bermuda can afford them is one question and whether they are necessary is another. With regard to the commercial court, the problem is the long-standing lack of enough judges to deal with the increasing volume of cases. Whether an entirely new system is necessary, with all of the accompanying bureaucracy, is a question the review panel will have to ask.

The same may be true for public defenders. Fees for lawyers taking legal aid cases have been increased, as have the criteria for cases that qualify. Whether Government-paid lawyers should take over this work entirely should be a matter for serious debate. Unfortunately, much of the experience elsewhere suggests that recruiting the best and the brightest to only do public defence work will be difficult.

It is curious that this panel has been formed before new Chief Justice Richard Ground?s arrival since many of the recommendations will have to be considered by him, and he may have different ideas about how the courts should be ordered. Since Sen. Mussenden was one of the Government?s lawyers who recommended Mrs. Justice Wade Miller for that post, it is hard to believe that there is no politics involved in this.

Still, this review has to be welcomed, at least as a sign that Government is finally taking the crime problem seriously. And for that reason alone, it deserves support.