BELIZE CITY, Fri. Nov. 12, 2021 — Today, the Bar Association issued a statement in response to what they call “irresponsible, reckless and defamatory” comments made by the public against their former president and the Director of Public Prosecution, Mrs. Cheryl-Lynn Vidal.

The Bar’s statement, like a statement made by Mrs. Vidal herself to local media last week, condemned the countless comments and accusations on social media that sought to link Mrs. Vidal with a drug plane landing in Toledo a week ago, on the basis of the presumed involvement of persons in her inner circle in the operation, and described such remarks as baseless and scurrilous.

The release from the Bar says there is not the “slightest suggestion” by anyone in authority that Mrs. Vidal was involved in the drug trafficking offense. The release states, “There is simply no reasonable basis whatsoever to properly so suggest. To assert guilt by virtue of mere association with her officially assigned security officer and her estranged husband is to perpetuate a logical fallacy.”

The release also points to a revelation made by DPP Vidal in her statement: that she has been living separately from ACP Marco Vidal, the former leader of the Command Operations Strike Team, of which 3 of the officers now remanded for the major drug bust were a part.
The release from the Bar additionally reminds the public of the presumption of innocence, which is entrenched in our laws.

“The Bar Association is compelled to remind the general public that all accused persons are entitled to be convicted by trial before a court of competent jurisdiction and not trial by press or by social media,” the release states.

In her public statement to local media last week, Mrs. Vidal expressed concern about the erosion of the public’s confidence in the criminal justice system due to all the untrue and defamatory remarks made against her, given her role as the head of criminal prosecutions in the country.

In her statement, she made it clear that she has full confidence in the justice system and urged members of the public to do so as well.

The Bar Association, for its part, also expressed confidence in the integrity and competence of Mrs. Vidal herself. “Mrs. Vidal SC is a Senior Counsel and former President of the Bar Association who has dedicated the better part of her legal career to public prosecutions. As Belize’s Director of Public Prosecutions, she has executed her constitutional duties with dedication, competence, integrity, and high ethical standards,” the Bar’s statement said.

They say the comments on social media were not only a smear on her name but that those remarks also weakened confidence in the integrity of the criminal justice system.

“The Bar Association expresses its confidence in Mrs. Vidal SC and condemns the irresponsible, reckless, and defamatory comments being made on social media which not only smear her name and reputation but also degrades public confidence in the integrity and administration of the criminal justice system,” the statement said.
The Bar maintains its confidence in the capacity of the criminal justice system to investigate and punish all wrongdoers in accordance with our laws.