KINGSTON, Jamaica — With little fanfare and a sharp focus on duty over distinction, Claudette Thompson has taken the helm as Jamaica’s new Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), signaling the start of a new era for the prosecutorial arm of the state.
Unlike her predecessor, Paula Llewellyn, whose 16-year tenure brought both praise and public visibility, Thompson steps into the role with a measured tone, declaring an unwavering focus on the work—not the spotlight.
“I’m not here for applause. I’m here for accountability,” she stated in a brief post-assumption address to internal staff and judiciary stakeholders.
Duty Before Distinction
Thompson’s approach is intentionally unglamorous—anchored not in personality but in institutional strength. According to close legal colleagues, her style is best described as surgical: precise, quiet, and unshakable under pressure.
Her immediate objectives are straightforward: reinforce public confidence, streamline case backlogs, and strengthen internal prosecutorial review systems. But those who’ve worked alongside her suggest the impact will be anything but routine.
“She is not stepping in to manage. She’s stepping in to fortify,” said a senior Crown Counsel familiar with her vision.
An Internal Reformation Agenda
Already, internal directives have begun to circulate—focusing on independence from political influence, stricter timelines for prosecutorial decisions, and re-emphasizing the ODPP’s role as a non-partisan legal anchor, not a reactive press entity.
“She believes in quiet credibility,” a justice ministry official noted. “You won’t see her on every news clip, but you’ll feel the change in how justice is administered.”
No Illusions, Just Order
Thompson made it clear she has no interest in public pageantry or policy theatre. Her emphasis, instead, is institutional clarity: reasserting the ODPP’s neutral role in a landscape often distorted by social media, political heat, and public misconception.
“The work we do is invisible until it’s needed. And by then, it must be unimpeachable,” she reportedly told a closed-door audience of junior prosecutors.
Her message to the country? Justice is not a popularity contest, and this office is not a stage.
What’s Next?
With an expected round of internal audits, revised prosecution protocols, and greater inter-agency collaboration on the horizon, Thompson is not easing into the role. She’s assuming it like a tactician—one who understands that leadership in law is not wielded through words, but through decisions that hold when tested.
And if there’s any doubt as to her posture going forward, one line from her internal brief made it plain:
“We are not here to be liked. We are here to be lawful.”
