Justice Geoffrey Henderson is a former Judge of the International Criminal Court, The Hague and is a Judge of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. In his over 34 years of practical experience in the criminal justice system, he has functioned in a number of roles, including that of - Director of Public Prosecutions, member of the National Drug Council of Trinidad and Tobago, member of the Advisory Committee on the Power of Pardon (a constitutionally created committee to consider and recommend Presidential Pardons), and trial judge in the Criminal Division, High Court of Justice of Trinidad and Tobago.
In the area of Alternatives to Incarceration, Justice Henderson chaired the Steering Committee of the Drug Treatment Court Pilot Project, a multiagency committee created by the Chief Justice of Trinidad and Tobago in 2011 as part of the OAS/CICAD Drug Treatment Court in the Americas Programme. This committee was responsible for the launch of the country’s first Drug Treatment Court as a pilot project in 2012. This Pilot Drug Treatment Court was the precursor to the recently statutorily created Drug Treatment Court Process. The policy document which created that pilot Drug Treatment Court remains a hemispheric model on designing a court that uses pre-existing resources with little to no new funding or legislative intervention. This sets a strong foundation of support from both policy and service delivery agencies for the introduction of statutorily created and funded Drug Treatment Courts.
Additionally, he recently had the opportunity to participate in the first graduation of the Case Care Management programme which focuses on social integration of justice involved persons with substance use disorders. This was a very special opportunity to support these persons and their service providers.
Justice Henderson is a Fellow of the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute, and a Co-Chair of the Sub Group 3.3 Addressing Populations in Contact With The Criminal Justice System Including Alternatives to Incarceration, of the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats.