Governor Albert Bryan will make what Government House has characterized as an “important” announcement relative to the Department of Justice on Thursday afternoon.
According to the press invite, Mr. Bryan will make the announcement at 2:00 p.m. at the Arthur Able Complex (Old Danish School) in Frederiksted — the same location Mr. Bryan held his cabinet-announcing presser.
Government House gave no hints as to what should be expected.
Mr. Bryan has yet to name an attorney general to lead the Department of Justice, and the governor has said he intends to introduce legislation to the Senate that would allow attorneys general to serve for six-year terms — giving them autonomy to work on the behalf of the people — and removing the governor’s power to replace an attorney general without cause.
Currently, an attorney general serves at the pleasure of the governor and can be replaced at any time. This setup has oftentimes prevented attorneys general from effectively performing their duties, and it has been blamed by political observers as the cause for corruption in many governments.
“No longer will the attorney general be beholden to the politics of any particular administration, rather the attorney general will serve in the best interest of the people and this territory, regardless of who is sitting in Government House,” Mr. Bryan said during his State of the Territory Address in January.
The governor did not give an indication as to when the bill would be introduced, but the timeline is not expected to be protracted.
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