AFTER spending the last five years on remand for murder, Marlon Garrett was on Monday freed of the capital offence after the court agreed with his attorney that he’d acted in self-defence, and was wrongfully charged.

High Court Judge Sandil Kissoon ruled in favour of a motion moved by Garrett’s attorney, Ravindra Mohabir, to have the indictment quashed.

In May, Garrett was indicted for murder, but opted to plead guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter.

He admitted that on September 11, 2016, at Robb and Bourda Streets, he unlawfully killed an unidentified man.

At the start of Monday’s scheduled probation and sentencing hearing, Garrett informed the court that he was changing his plea, and was now denying that he had committed the offence.

Mohabir, during his motion for dismissal, told the court that Garrett, who was 17 at the time, had acted in self-defence against the victim to defend his mother’s stall.

Mohabir submitted that self-defence is not a criminal offence.

Taking all the aforementioned into consideration, Mohabir said that the committal proceeding at the Magistrates’ Court was flawed, having regard to the lack of evidence for murder or manslaughter.

Justice Kissoon agreed that Garrett “ought not to have been placed before this or any other court”, since the indictment cannot stand when taking the self-defence circumstances into consideration.

While deeming the case an infringement of justice, Justice Kissoon said that the indictment was “a travesty”.

“It is another of several cases within recent times that highlight the shortcomings of the prosecutorial arm,” the judge said.

Among other things, the judge said that the injustice meted out to Garrett breached the protection of his right to personal liberty, as enshrined in the Constitution of Guyana.

“Frequently, persons are left to languish in our penal institutions, in the worst conditions possible, when there is simply no evidence of criminal conduct against them, and no decision is forthcoming to terminate those proceedings, which do not attract the grant of the bail,” he said.

Justice Kissoon squashed the murder indictment and the committal order against Garrett, on the grounds of “evidential insufficiency”.

“A great injustice has been done to you, Sir. I cannot undo what has been done; I could only attempt to expedite your release from prison,” the judge said to Garrett, as he apologised on behalf of the court.

The State was represented by Prosecutors Taneisha Saygon, Abigail Gibbs, and Mohammed Ali.

According to reports, Garrett was at his mother’s stall at the Bourda Market when he was attacked by the vagrant. Garrett then, reportedly, whipped out a knife and stabbed the man once to the lower region of his abdomen.

The victim was pronounced dead at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), and Garrett was later arrested and charged.

While the deceased is still to be identified by relatives to the police, persons in the market identified him as 34-year-old Omesh Chetram, formerly of Unity, East Coast Demerara.