ON the direction of Justice Jo-Ann-Barlow at the Demerara Assizes yesterday, manslaughter accused Gavin Towler was freed on a no-case submission.

The unrepresented accused had earlier pleaded not guilty to the unlawful killing of Samantha Marques at Middle Road, La Penitence, in 2009.

Pathologist Dr. Nehaul Singh had testified that manslaughter victim Samantha Marques was pregnant when she sustained the injuries which led to her demise.

Marques had reportedly been involved in a physical altercation with her reputed husband Gavin Towler a few weeks before she died. The court heard from Prosecutors Narissa Leander and Michael Shahoud that the accused had used a pillow in an attempt to suffocate Marques after they had been involved in an argument sometime between October 13 and 19, 2009.

However on resumption of the trial yesterday, after perusing the evidence, including the pathologist’s testimony, the judge found that the prosecution had not established a case for the accused to answer, and she directed the jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty of manslaughter in relation to the accused. The accused was discharged after the jury returned the verdict.