Politicians who hold the purse strings for the judiciary have been ignoring repeated complaints from chief justices of the Supreme Court about inadequate facilities for nearly two decades, and the recent decision of a senior justice of that court not to sit in condemned facilities only drives the point home.

In fact, one senior member of the bar said that if politicians had to work in the same conditions judges are forced to work in, "they would have had a new building in no time."

Senior Justice Anita Allen abandoned her court on Bank Lane nearly two weeks ago, refusing to endanger her life or the lives of her staff and those who came to court in the condemned premises.

Justice Allen complained that, despite the building having been condemned ? a fact confirmed by Director of Works Gordon Major ? nothing was done about either repairing the facilities or selecting alternative quarters for her to hold court.

Acting Supreme Court Registrar Donna Newton announced over the weekend that Justice Allen would be holding court in the Saffrey Square Building on East Street North beginning today (Monday).

According to Sir Burton, Justice Allen?s complaint about nothing being done to remedy the unsafe conditions is not the real issue.

"The Supreme Court and even the Magistrates Courts have long outgrown the facilities," he said. "When I became Chief Justice in 2001, I would have picked up the call that my predecessors would have made from back before I joined the bench in 1990."

"I remember complaints made by chief justices way before then of the need to address the inadequacy of the buildings available for judges."

In a Bahama Journal exclusive, Chief Justice Sir Burton Hall said he personally consented for Senior Justice Anita Allen to work from home.

Justice Allen has not been to work for the past two weeks after the building she works out of was condemned back in April by the Ministry of Works.

Sir Burton said there were certain structural deficiencies, which had to be remedied according to the report from the engineers.

"Months have elapsed since the initial report and to the present nothing has been done and therefore the question whether she and her staff should properly continue to sit in that building became a very live question. Initially I had told her that she should work from home," he said.

"She chose to sit partially in that court and other court rooms that were available and you could imagine the difficulty with moving from court to court, building to building.

Jeanne Thompson, former Supreme Court Justice, said successive administrations have not shown enough respect for the third arm of government.

"From watching successive governments, I haven?t found them to be sympathetic to the judiciary. They want the judiciary to work and I get the impression that they feel that no matter what, the judiciary is going to work anyhow," she said.

"I remember being on the Bar Council and trying to get these things addressed on behalf of the judges. At one stage I remember saying that the judiciary, being the third arm of government, should be more separate, physically and fiscally separate from the executive and legislature."

She says as a result of that mindset, members of the executive do not pay as much attention as they should to the needs of those who conduct a very important job, that is administer justice.

"I can tell you if the members of parliament had to work in the conditions the judiciary has to work in, they would have a new building in no time," she said.

President of The Bahamas Bar Association Wayne Munroe said not only are judges affected but, more importantly, the public is affected.

"I think it has to be approached from the point of view that its not only impacting judges and attorneys, but also on the public," he said.

"Attorneys bring the public?s cases before the judges and the judges vindicate or adjudicate the rights of the citizens. So, it is not a matter whether the spaces are there for the judges? amusement, but the spaces are there so the judiciary can efficiently do the public?s business in terms of protecting their rights."

Mr. Munroe elaborated.

"How could you call on a senior justice in the judiciary to sit in a condemned building? If the Ministry of Works was to condemn my office building, they would want to shut me out the first day after its condemned and nobody would reasonably expect me to use it," he said.

"You cannot expect a senior justice of the supreme court to be back and forth like a bull looking for a home. That is beneath the stature of the office. What has happened for years and years, because judges have been obsessed with doing the peoples? business and upholding the peoples? rights, is that they have put up with conditions that they ought not to be called to put up with."

He maintains that judges and the public have been exposed to physical danger.

By Sasha L. Lightbourne