Judge to rule on admissibility of alleged confession
Justice Dawn Gregory, the trial judge in the Bagotstown murder trial, who had begun hearing a voir dire in the absence of the jury and had already ruled against the accused in relation to a no-case submission, will today rule on the question of  whether an alleged statement by the accused, Travis Rudder, is admissible in evidence. The 17-year-old Rudder is being defended by Attorney-at-Law Mr. Glenn Hanoman. Through his counsel, Rudder had objected to the statement on the ground that it had not been obtained in accordance with the Judge’s Rules.
Rudder is on trial for the murder of his 14-year-old girlfriend Donnis King, who died in hospital on March 13, 2011 from gunshot wounds inflicted on her on February 23rd 2011.
Following today’s ruling, Prosecutor Miss Konyo Sandiford, in association with  Attorney-at-Law  Miss Renita Singh, is expected to ask Justice Gregory to begin another voir dire (a trial within a trial) to decide a question of law on whether a relevant  statement from the girl, after the shooting and prior to her death, was admissible in evidence.
The examination is expected to proceed along the lines of a dying declaration.
Defence counsel, Mr. Glenn Hanoman is reportedly objecting to the evidence in relation to the girl being tendered in court.