Grenada's ruling New National Party (NNP) government is looking for a new legal person to replace Patricia Mark as Chief Magistrate on the island.
Informed sources told GRENADA TODAY that Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell has already held an audience with Mark at his office at the Botanical Gardens in St. George's on the timing of her exit from the top legal post.
Speculation is rife that the female magistrate is due to demit office later in the year on reaching the mandatory age of retirement. The sitting Magistrate in Grenville, attorney-at-law, Jerry Seales is tipped to replace Mark as Chief Magistrate.
According to a top legal source, the Prime Minister took the unprecedented steps of inviting the Chief Magistrate to his office for a 7.30 a.m meeting to discuss her future on the bench.
"What I understand is that he (Dr. Mitchell) told her (the Magistrate) that he understands that she was giving trouble to leave. Little does he know that Miss Mark is ready to go as soon as the time comes for her to go", he said.
The source accused Dr. Mitchell of not following protocol in having an audience of that nature with the Chief Magistrate to discuss her future on the bench.
"He (the Prime Minister) ought not to have done that at all. If anyone had to meet with her (Mark) it would have had to be either the Attorney-General or the Minister of Legal Affairs but that is how he (Mitchell) likes to operate", he remarked.
The Chief Magistrate was noticeably absent from Monday's sitting of court. No reason was offered for her absence. One of the cases listed for hearing involved Prime Minister Mitchell himself.
He is currently on the witness stand as the complainant in a crimina libel matter brought against the editor of the GRENADA TODAy newspaper. Dr. Mitchell has not attended any sitting of the court in the past four years.
Neither the Prime Minister or his Special Prosecutor, controversial Jamaican attorney, Hugh Wildman attended Monday's court sitting for the matter which was adjourned until April 4.
