AFTER being discharged by Justice Dawn Gregory yesterday, Mark Thompson who had to wear a mask during the North West District White Creek Village murder trial to prevent the tuberculosis disease he contracted in jail from spreading displayed an apparent unease in leaving the dock.

Afterwards he took a seat on the prisoners’ bench and had to be helped from the court by a policewoman.
He had no relative in attendance at the trial. Thompson was escorted to a taxi which took him to the prison to collect his clothing, with the hope that the authorities there would guide him to the Amerindian Hostel where arrangements would be made to get him to his home at White Creek Village.
It was there where it was alleged on the 13th January, 2008 he murdered Romel Williams, his 31-year-old cousin during a fight.
Prosecutor   Miss Diana Kaulesar, associated with Miss Renita Singh, contended that the accused intended to do grievous bodily harm to Romel Williams, the deceased, and as such he was guilty of murder.
But Thompson, represented by Mr. Peter Hugh who was assigned by the State, made a strong case for self-defence.
And he was helped by the prosecution’s failure to tender the depositions of the two missing eyewitnesses. The judge had ruled that the depositions were inadmissible in evidence.
The deponents, who testified at the preliminary inquiry (PI) into the charge against Thompson, called ‘Ishley’, could not have been located to testify for the State at the jury trial.
As a consequence, Kaulesar and Singh sought under Section 95 to have their depositions admitted in evidence in their absence on the grounds that the witnesses could not be located and are believed to be out of the jurisdiction.
For that purpose, the judge conducted a voir dire (trial within a trial) in the absence of the jury which led to the conclusion that the depositions were inadmissible in evidence.

Following the ruling, the defence counsel made a no-case submission contending that the remaining evidence was not sufficient to prove a case against the accused who was indicted for the unlawful killing of his cousin, Romel Williams at White Creek Village.
Justice Gregory overruled that submission and called for a defence.
The case ended yesterday with the jury returning verdicts of not guilty of murder and not guilty of manslaughter.