Crown counsel Vinette Graham-Allen yesterday sought to “set the record straight” over the role of prosecutors following recent criticism that some are trying to undermine defence lawyers.

In what appeared to be a direct rebuttal of comments from defence lawyer Sen. Larry Mussenden last week that some prosecutors are trying to weaken the defence and consistently make “inflammatory” remarks, she said prosecutors are committed to fair trials, not winning cases at any cost.

Sen. Mussenden was heavily criticised in Supreme Court last week by Ms Graham-Allen and Assistant Justice Archibald Warner after the trial of an alleged drug dealer was adjourned because the lawyer was not in court although he was listed on the record as defending the accused.

Ms Graham-Allen said defence lawyers were officers of the court and had to uphold the ethics of profession by informing the court if they could not appear.

Sen. Mussenden hit back later, suggesting Ms Graham-Allen's comments emanated from jealousy at how well he defended his clients.

He said: “I am starting to realise that there are a number of people involved in the criminal justice system who will take any chance to undermine the work and reputation of criminal defence lawyers, of which there are only a few, and for those people, I would suggest they take a step back and consider what they do to the profession when they make such inflammatory remarks about defence counsel.”

At Supreme Court yesterday, Ms Graham-Allen said: “There has been a lot of misinformation fed to the public about the role of the public prosecutor and it is time to set the record straight.”

Speaking as the trial of alleged drug dealer Lincoln George Brown was adjourned again because he did not have a lawyer, Ms Graham-Allen quoted from a a previous case outlining the role of the prosecutor.

“It cannot be over-emphasised that the purpose of the criminal prosecution is not to obtain conviction; it is to lay before a jury what the Crown considers to be credible evidence relevant to what is alleged to be a crime,” she said.

“Counsel have a duty to see that all available legal proof of the facts is presented: it should be done firmly and pressed to its legitimate strength, but it must be done fairly.

“The role of the prosecutor excludes any notion of winning or losing; his function is a matter of public duty than which in civil life there can be none charged with greater personal responsibility.

“It is to be efficiently performed with an ingrained sense of the dignity, the seriousness and the justness of judicial proceedings.”

And she said the International Association of Prosecutors, to which the Bermuda Department of Public Prosecutions is aligned, has standards where the Crown “seeks to ensure that all necessary and reasonable enquiries are made and the result disclosed, whether that points to the guilt or the innocence of the suspect”.

And prosecutors “should always search for the truth and assist the court to arrive at the truth and to do justice between the community, the victim and the accused according to law and the dictates of fairness”.

When asked afterwards if she wanted to respond to Mr. Mussenden's comments, Ms Graham-Allen said she had nothing to add to what she said in court about her role to “uphold the dignity and integrity of the role of prosecutor”.