driving sentence imposed on Jessie DeCouto by the Senior Magistrate for drunk driving. Mr. DeCouto's first reaction to his sentence was probably relief if not some joy but, in all likelihood, Mr. DeCouto now wishes that he had been given the maximum sentence and allowed to drop from sight. Most people on drunk driving charges hope to get it over with as quickly as possible. As it is, Mr. DeCouto is undergoing the punishment of unlimited publicity because the magistrate was lenient.

It is unprecedented for magistrates to explain a sentence to the media. Senior Magistrate Will Francis did just that. It is also very rare for Cabinet Ministers to enter the fray and discuss the courts. There is a basic principle that the courts should be above politics and that there should be notable distance between the legislature and the judiciary. In this case two Cabinet Ministers, wrongly we think, were open in their disagreement with the sentence.

Parliament, not the magistrates, changed the law as it applies to drunk driving disqualifications and provided for discretion instead of a blanket disqualification from all motorised vehicles. Perhaps it was another in a growing list of mistakes in the way Bermuda's legislation is written. It may be that no-one in Parliament noticed what effect the change would have in the courts. But Parliament makes the laws and magistrates administer them. It is unfair and unwise for Parliament to change a law and then for Ministers to complain about the way the law is administered by the magistrates.

Having said that, we should repeat that seldom has a sentence stirred so much public controversy.

It seems unlikely to us that there was favouritism involved in the sentence, even though Jessie DeCouto is the son of lawyer-MP Ann Cartwright DeCouto, But it is clear that the sentence was out of line with public thinking. The reaction to the sentence indicates that the public wants drunk drivers off the roads. There was alarm that drunk driving sentences were being decreased when the public wanted them increased. To its credit, Government has pledged a review of the laws as they apply to drinking and driving.

A great majority of the public is alarmed about traffic conditions in general and especially alarmed by the dangers of drunk driving.

There certainly should be testing in hospital of road accident victims suspected of being under the influence of drink or drugs. It is our understanding that alcohol plays a part in most serious traffic accidents.

It does seem that Bermuda's penalties are rather light. We do not think that large fines make a great deal of difference in Bermuda. The solution is probably to confiscate the vehicle. Certainly drunk drivers should be retested and required to undergo alcohol treatment before they are relicensed. Anyone who drives drunk has an alcohol problem.