SEPARATING fact from fiction has so far proved to be one of the central themes – and one of the main difficulties – of Jersey’s continuing inquiry into historical child abuse.
The information presented last week by Attorney General William Bailhache about the progress of the inquiry in relation to possible prosecutions was therefore a welcome, albeit somewhat belated, addition to the process of clarification.
It should also have brought great comfort to the victims of alleged abuse to be publicly reassured about the level of care with which complaints and case files are being considered, and to reflect that the time being taken to do so is neither excessive nor unique. Contrary to an impression created, deliberately or otherwise, by some of those seeking to speak on behalf of the Island’s care leavers, the Law Officers’ Department is not dragging its heels over the investigation. In fact, only six files have so far reached that department from the States police, following complaints to them, they say, about scores of suspects, and of those half dozen, three have resulted in prosecutions already under way.
Give the painstaking attention to detail required before a case can be taken to court with a reasonable chance of conviction, that is not a rate that should give cause for concern, nor does it bear out the reported claims of former deputy police chief Lenny Harper that the inquiry is somehow being hampered by the machinations, or the incompetence, of a Jersey ‘old boy’ network.
Of at least equal importance is the absolute assurance given by Mr Bailhache of the seriousness with which the allegations are being taken and the importance attached to the rights and well-being of the victims. To back that statement, he revealed in an
interview with this newspaper on Saturday  the impressive size and professional expertise of the team working on the inquiry in his department.
All of those points should have served to clear the air and allow the processes of justice to continue as carefully as they must and as concentratedly as they can despite the inevitable continuation of sniping from the sidelines by Jersey’s detractors.
It is said that justice delayed is justice denied. In cases as complex and sensitive as those now confronting the Law Officers, and in the atmosphere of near-hysteria whipped up around them, the same might be said of justice rushed. On the evidence so far, Mr Bailhache deserves full public and political backing for his belief that Jersey’s legal system is well capable of handling the daunting task before it.