The demotion of Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech to a district court is part of a reshuffle of the judiciary, and the issue is being handled quietly without any follow-through. The President of the Chamber of Advocates, Peter Fenech, even discussed the matter with Chief Justice Mark Chetcuti, but it seems they have agreed to remain silent on the matter. The Chamber of Advocates has not issued any statement about the matter, despite discussing it internally as well. In his inauguration speech, Peter Fenech claimed that the Chamber would be speaking out on any shortcomings of the justice system.
Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech has jeapordised the trust in the judiciary and speaking about this matter in public risks tarnishing the judiciary’s reputation even further. In practice, the Chief Justice is limited in his actions, and he appears to be taking a rational and minimalist approach: removing the Magistrate from a position where she could potentially harm the justice system and society in general, all while defending the reputation of the judiciary.
What is missing in this story is the police, of course. Given the multiple witnesses who had come forward to the Chief Justice with very serious accusations, the police should have taken the initiative to conduct their investigations. Some of these allegations even include a dinner with Darren Debono who is appearing in her court. Her latest shenanigans include the mishandling of evidence of Keith Schembri who is also appearing in front of her court. Just this week it was revealed that her court expert could enter the evidence storage room without any written authorisation.
It’s quite true what Matthew Brincat has claimed in the court, who so far, has been the only lawyer to have testified on Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech. Even though many people know many things about Magistrate Donatella Frendo Dimech, there’s also a lot of omertà and many are not just afraid to challenge a Magistrate, they are also probably afraid of who potentially is backing her.
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