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Daniel Holmes’s family petitions European Commission on ‘systematic discrimination’
Family tells Brussels that Maltese justice system "based on systematic discrimination against anyone who is not Maltese".
26 December 2013, 12:00am
Staff Reporter
Staff Reporter
3 min read
Mel Holmes and his son Daniel
The family of a British convict Daniel Holmes, who is serving 10 years in prison for cannabis offences, is petitioning the European Commission alleging "systemic discrimination" against non-Maltese offenders.
Daniel Holmes was convicted in 2011, five years after his arrest, and the sentence was confirmed by appeal court judges in October.
Holmes told British newspaper The Guardian that he was buoyed by the Maltese people who had campaigned on his behalf, including on protest marches. "Although I am a foreigner, it is not just [about] my case. It is the whole system and the way it works." Everything "moves so incredibly slowly", added Holmes.
"Although I have been pretty much always a cannabis smoker, I have held down jobs and never let it get in the way of my life."
Holmes's father Mel, said: "Daniel has now done three years altogether for the crime and that should be long enough." The family was considering further legal action in Malta and, depending on the result, taking the case to the European court of human rights. Mel has also written to the European Commission, alleging the justice system was "based on systematic discrimination against anyone who is not Maltese".
He and his wife Kate, both retired teachers, have so far spent about €35,000 in financial support for their son including rent, legal fees and travelling to see him.
Supporters say he admitted offences on legal advice, expecting to receive less punishment. His lawyer had suggested a four-year jail term and the prosecutors had wanted eight. Appeal judges, upholding the sentences including a €23,000 fine, said Maltese law made no distinction "between one dangerous drug and another". Holmes had admitted serious offences, some carrying life sentences, and had more than a kilo of cannabis, they said.
Holmes came to Malta in 2005. In 2006, he and Briton Barry Lee were arrested in June 2006. Lee was found dead in a prison cell in Malta in 2010. A coroner in Bolton, UK, later recorded an open verdict because he was not convinced Lee intended to kill himself, according to local newspaper reports.
Holmes spent about a year in prison in all before finding work at a pub, where he met his now wife Marzena, who is Polish, in 2009, well before his trial. They have a two-year-old daughter, Rainbow.
Facing another Christmas in jail, Holmes said: "It is not a nice place to be. There are a few of us who try to look on the bright side, play Ludo, have a bit of Christmas cake but it is a very bleak time of year." The British embassy and Foreign Office had been "terrible and maddening" in their lack of support, Holmes said. Apart from channelling money from and to his family, "they have given me no help. It has caused my mum and dad much more stress."
The Foreign Office told the Guardian: "We are aware of the detention in Malta of Daniel Holmes, and his recent appeal. We continue to provide consular assistance to Mr Holmes and his family."
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Mr. Holmes Senior, you'll do more good helping your son give up his weed smoking habit rather than whining about the Maltese justice system like a loser. This will ensure he will not get into trouble again. Btw, keep in mind that in some countries, such an offence carries much harsher penalties. Make sure he keeps out of these countries once you are at it.
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Mr Holmes you are right, do not bother re appealing to the Maltese courts because it is a waste of time and money. Your son is a marked man by the courts and no appeal court judge is going to overturn a sentence handed down by one of their own. Birds of a feather, stick together. Your son committed a crime and he was punished for it. The problem is he appeared before the wrong judge and at the wrong time. Many others have broken that same law and the courts were a lot more lenient than this judge was with your son. We all know that Maltese courts are some of the most incompetent in all of the EU States and well known to use two weights and two measures when it comes to sentencing, especially differentiating between a national and a foreigner. Mr Holmes unless you are in a position to engage a lawyer like Franco Debono et all, do not waste time with the Maltese courts which are very well known for their incompetency. The majority of Maltese people agree and sympathize with you but the courts do not care about the people's voice. We are Maltese and we act as we please is the court's attitude.
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@ Avukat. You are right but this is Malta and if you are really an Avukat you know that our courts in Malta are very inconsistent with their sentencing and they are widely known for using two weights and two measures. A lot of people have appeared before the courts for committing a lot worse crimes and received a suspended sentence, especially if they are of Maltese Nationality. We all know the drill Mr Avukat and if you do not, better get familiar with our incompetent courts. Mr Holmes appeared before the wrong Judge at the wrong time and at the wrong place. That makes for the wrong sentencing formula. Like I said before, if you are a real Avukat, then you know what I am talking about.
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You do the crime you do the time
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I strongly suggest that the British Foreign Office locate and engage a Maltese lawyer with the usual credentials for success; a possible direct family link (however remote) to the Magistrate dealing with the case in question, a membership to the inner circle of coffee-shop legal ‘solutions’ that is widely acknowledged, but not generally spoken of, or, alternatively, assisting Mr Holmes in an immediate and direct application to The European Court of Justice. In a supposedly ‘European’ country of 2013/14, where a Magistrate will agree to facilitate the avoidance of natural justice by annulling a case regarding a property in situ in Gozo simply because the litigants are BOTH residents in Malta, thereby prolonging the caseload and possibly costs/income for the Maltese courts rather than providing an immediate solution, is in itself a blatant travesty of justice. Yes, it is the Law, but it is being ridiculed by the very people appointed to uphold it. I have personally also been exposed to an ‘Arbitrur’ in a Tribunal declaring openly, without verification or investigation, that ‘prokuri verbali’ are acceptable, (in technologically advanced 2013!) even though the documents provided to support this statement clearly show that they are actually, and according to a Notory’s sworn statement in the same court; invalid. Mr Holmes, and any prospective citizenship purchasers, need someone within the inner circle, or better still ‘a friend’ within The European Court of Justice.
