Third Circuit Slams V.I. Judicial Delays; Supreme Court Voids Statute Meant to Address Them

ENDURING JUDICIAL INERTIA

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals excoriated the territory’s courts for “enduring judicial inertia” in a ruling Monday over an inmate’s petition that has languished for 10 years. The opinion comes just days after the V.I. Supreme Court struck down a Virgin Islands statute mandating speedy trials for elderly litigants, saying it is an unconstitutional violation of the separation of powers doctrine.

The Third Circuit case concerns Jamal Morton. Convicted of second-degree murder and firearms offenses in 2012 in V.I. Superior Court and sentenced to 50 years, he has waited 10 years for the court to respond to the merits of his habeas petition — essentially a review of the validity of his convictions.