Jury returns confused acquittal verdict – DPP appeals
A jury’s ‘not guilty’ verdict of murder in the Leopold Street murder that appeared not to be unanimous led to the Director of Public Prosecutions invoking the 2010 Appeal’s Amendment Act, by appealing the acquittal  of Tarel Edwards. This is the second such appeal since the Order was introduced last year.
Edwards, on trial for the murder of Terence Moffat, should have been going home; but because of the appeal to his acquittal by DPP Miss Shalimar Ali-Hack, the freed accused was back in custody awaiting the outcome of the appeal.
However, his counsel, Mr. Peter Hugh, pleaded for bail and was granted this in the sum of $100, 000 with  similar surety.
The mixed jury in the Leopold Street murder was in confusion over a verdict.
After deliberating over three hours, the foreman of the jury said one thing at one time and then she muttered something else.
At one time she said that the accused was not guilty of murder, then she muttered in the proportion of eight to four. When asked whether , the verdict was unanimous,  she explained that they did not consider manslaughter.
THE mixed jury had heard that Terrence Moffat, now dead,  was among friends in Leopold Street on  April 2, 2006, when he was allegedly shot by gunman Tarel Edwards, who was subsequently charged with murder.
Prosecutor Miss  Rhondel Weaver , in association with Miss  Teshana  James, conducted the case for the prosecution.
The prosecutor led evidence to prove that when the accused  inflicted the gun shot injuries on the deceased, it was not done in self defence, nor was it an accident, nor was there any provocation.
The jury was also told that in order to prove its case to them, the prosecution intends to lead evidence through several witnesses.  The evidence  that it led  was classified as direct or circumstantial evidence.
In a nutshell, on  April 2,  2006, the deceased  was standing on the corner of Leopold and Breda  Streets.  He was in the company of two of his friends, Neville Boyce and Julian Masdammer, who were sitting on a plank in front of a barber shop.
Then the accused was seen in Leopold street, coming towards them  with an object in his hand.   This object was what appeared to be a gun.
The accused walked  past Boyce and Masdammer and went straight to the deceased,  Terrence Moffat, raised his hand  with the object  that appeared to be a gun and  lashed  Terrence Moffat on his  head.    A loud sound was then heard  and Julian Masdammer then got up and walked off a few feet. Masdammer felt a burning on his left side shoulder and when he looked at it,  he  saw  blood running down.
Witnesses saw the accused continue to lash Terrence Moffat with the object and Moffat fell to the ground in a sitting  position with the accused over him.  An explosion was heard and the deceased  fell to the ground.
A post mortem was performed on the body of Moffat and it was revealed  that the cause of death was internal injuries due to gunshot injuries.