Alleged victim, mother testify in carnal knowledge case
THE alleged victim yesterday recalled, to Justice Winston Paterson and a Demerara Assizes mixed jury, the day when she was sexually assaulted by her caretaker cousin.
She said she was seven years old then but now, 13, she gave unsworn testimony
about the incident, at the trial of Joel Jones, who was 16 at the time.
The judge ruled that she could not take the oath because of her inability to understand the nature of it.
She said she had told her grandmother about the assault at the first opportunity but, subsequently, admitted she did not tell the woman anything.
The girl alleged that the accused had struck her on the head with a hammer and she had to receive several stitches to the wound.
A close relative testified that, sometimes the victim would exhibit signs of poor memory, by returning from the shop to enquire for what she had been sent.
The mother of the virtual complainant, who had left her in the care of Jones, on the morning of December 1, 2005, said she told him to make sure her daughter took a bath in the afternoon.
The mother did not return home until 19:30h  that evening when she said she observed that, contrary to her expectations, the daughter was bathing at that hour and shouted from the bathroom that Jones had sexual intercourse with her.
The witness said, acting on the complaint, she took her daughter and made a report to the police.
Jones, represented by defence counsel Peter Hugh, is indicted for having carnal knowledge of a girl under 15 years of age, with State Counsel Teshana James and Rhondel
Weaver prosecuting.
On Thursday, the judge noted that, while the Guyana Chronicle did not report on the trial, another newspaper wrongly stated that the court had asked the prosecuting lawyers to be lenient with the accused because of prevailing circumstances.
But Justice Patterson said he made no such request.
The case continues on Monday.