Dominican attorney Clement Joseph has been officially appointed as Antigua and Barbuda’s new Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), stepping into the role left vacant since the retirement of Jamaican national Anthony Armstrong in 2022.
Joseph is set to assume duties on May 19, according to an announcement by Attorney General Sir Steadroy Benjamin, who praised the incoming DPP as “highly qualified” with “a huge record of successes at all levels of court proceedings.”
A former police officer turned seasoned prosecutor, Joseph previously served as the DPP in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Prior to that, he worked in the DPP’s office in his native Dominica. His appointment follows a rigorous selection process, with the government requiring candidates to have at least 20 years of criminal court experience—including at least a decade at the Senior Crown Counsel level or its equivalent.
The position had remained unfilled since Armstrong’s early retirement in December 2022. Armstrong, who had held the DPP post since the early 2000s, stepped down amid legal troubles stemming from his time practicing law in Jamaica. The General Legal Council in Jamaica found that Armstrong had acted improperly by signing as a witness to documents for a person who was not physically present—an action deemed to be contrary to Jamaican law in connection with the sale of three properties.
He was subsequently charged by Jamaican police in 2022 and released on bail set at J$500,000 (approximately US$4,000). Armstrong appealed the ruling, and by September 2024, his attorney, Hugh Wildman, indicated that all charges were expected to be dropped.
Joseph’s appointment is being welcomed as a new chapter for the Office of the DPP, with legal observers noting his regional prosecutorial experience and law enforcement background as assets in strengthening public confidence in the justice system.
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