By: G Bennie Bravo Johnson I
Justice Yamie Quiqui Gberisay, Justice in the Chamber of the Supreme Court of Liberia has ordered Criminal Court C’ Judge, Blamo Dixon to step aside from presiding over the economic sabotage involving Former Minister Tweah, versus the Government of Liberia.
“This Court is of the opinion that the judge should recuse himself from the trial of the case in the interest of transparency and justice.” Justice Gberisay ruled.
The officials of former President George Weah’s administration were charged with multiple crimes, including economic sabotage, fraud, and criminal conspiracy.
The Chamber Justice order comes after the Supreme Court of Liberia granted a writ of certiorari requested by state prosecutors in the case against the presiding Judge Blamo Dixon.
“This writ orders Criminal Court “C” to send all relevant documents to the Supreme Court for review. On December 23, 2024, prosecutors filed the petition against Judge A. Blamo Dixon for his refusal to recuse himself from the case for a second time. They allege that Judge Dixon has shown bias since the case began.”
Meanwhile, Justice Gberisay averred the Court’s long-standing principle which provides that “Every Party litigant, including the state in criminal cases, is entitled to nothing less than the cold neutrality of an impartial judge. If the judge before whom a case is to be tried is prejudiced or otherwise disqualified, he may be challenged, and if the challenge is sustained, the case may be moved to another court or tried before another judge.”
However, during the hearing, defense lawyers argued that the petitioner had no legal grounds for the judge’s recusal. They contended that the grounds for recusal in Liberia include demonstrable conflict of interest, proven blood relations, and other statutory or legal grounds established by the Supreme Court.
But Justice Gberisay further noted that a judge who loses the appearance of neutrality and fairness in the eyes of one of the parties, based on statements and actions on record, must recuse himself to preserve the sanctity of the trial and the court.
Addressing whether the trial judge erred in denying the petitioner’s motion for recusal, Justice Gberisay acknowledged the petitioner’s argument that the judge’s actions were biased and prejudicial. He highlighted a specific instance where the judge questioned the detention of co-defendant Samuel D. Tweah Jr. at the Monrovia Central Prison, suggesting it might not help the prosecution’s case.
The prosecution cited several grounds for recusal, including prejudice, conflict of interest, and improper conduct. Judge Dixon has denied these allegations, asserting that he has not violated any judicial standards in the ongoing proceedings involving Tweah and others.
Former Finance Minister Samuel D. Tweh, who was previously sanctioned by the US for corruption, in July of 2024 along with four former officials of the Weah led administration were indicted for economic sabotage, illegal disbursement and expenditure of public money, criminal conspiracy, and other charges.
The co-defendants include former Solicitor General Nyanti Tuan, Stanley S. Ford, former Director General Financial Intelligence Agency, D. Moses Cooper former Controller General Financial Intelligence Agency, and Jefferson Karmoh former national security adviser to President George Weah.
