Vernon Amy Tomes (22 February 1932 – 1999) was Deputy

Bailiff A bailiff (from Middle English baillif, Old French ''baillis'', ''bail'' "custody") is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. Bailiffs are of various kinds and their offi ...

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...

in the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

from 1986 to 1992.

Early years

Tomes was born in St John, Jersey the son of Wilfred James Tomes, a former Connétable of the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

, and Florence Annie Amy. He was educated at St John's Elementary School and (on a States of Jersey scholarship) at

Victoria College, Jersey Victoria College is a Government of Jersey, Government-run, Independent school, fee-paying, academically selective day school

Career

In 1951, Tomes qualified as a

solicitor A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and ...

of the

Royal Court of Jersey The Royal Court is the principal and oldest court in Jersey, and exercises both criminal and civil jurisdiction. It can sit in a number of configurations, depending on the type of case and the powers to be exercised. History The Court has its ...

. He was elected to the

States of Jersey The States Assembly (french: Assemblée des États; Jèrriais: ) is the parliament of Jersey, formed of the island's 37 deputies and the Connétable of each of the twelve parishes. The origins of the legislature of Jersey lie in the system o ...

as Deputy for St Helier No. 2 District in 1960 and served until 1969 presiding over several committees. In 1969 he was appointed HM Solicitor General and was HM Attorney General between 1975 and 1985. He was appointed as Deputy Bailiff in 1986 and served in the post until he was removed from office in 1992, at the request of the Bailiff Sir

Peter Crill Sir Peter Leslie Crill (1 February 1925 – 3 October 2005) was Bailiff of Jersey from 1986 to 1991. Early years Crill attended Victoria College, Jersey between 1932 and 1943. He started work, during the German occupation of Jersey, for th ...

, by the United Kingdom's

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

Kenneth Clarke Kenneth Harry Clarke, Baron Clarke of Nottingham, (born 2 July 1940), often known as Ken Clarke, is a British politician who served as Home Secretary from 1992 to 1993 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1993 to 1997 as well as serving as de ...

. According to Sir Peter Crill, Tomes was accused by the police of tipping off a friend about a drugs raid on a nephew's home and the office received complaints that Tomes was slow in producing written judgments.St. Helier Journal; On Queen's Special Island, Lese-Majeste No Less
''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', June 10, 1992 In the 1993 elections, Tomes topped the poll to become a Senator.

References

Sources

*Alastair Layzell (ed), ''Who's Who in the Channel Islands 1987'' (Jersey 1987) {{DEFAULTSORT:Tomes, Vernon 1932 births 1999 deaths People from Saint John, Jersey Jersey lawyers Judiciary of Jersey 20th-century British lawyers Deputy Bailiffs of Jersey