….Prosecution offers no evidence – but appeals acquittal
Murder accused Squince Mc Lennon had his voir dire in relation to the admissibility of an alleged confession statement on the killing of Anson Melville thrown out by Justice Dawn Gregory yesterday afternoon. After hearing the results of the voir dire, prosecutor Mrs. Judith Gildharie-Mursalin, who had requested the holding of the voir dire (a trial within a trial) because she had no other evidence, indicated to the court that she had no further evidence to offer against the accused.
This resulted in defence Counsel Mr. Basil Williams submitting to the Judge that there being no case for his client to answer, he was asking that he be discharged at this stage.
As a consequence, the Judge directed the jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty in favour of the accused.
At this stage, before the accused was discharged, the prosecutor served a notice of intention to appeal against a verdict of Acquittal under Section 33C (1) of the Court of Appeal (Amendment) Act No. 4 of 2010.
The notice pointed out that the Director of Public Prosecutions desires to appeal against the verdict of acquittal in the abovementioned case of The State –vs- Squince Mc Lennon for the offence of murder, contrary to Section 100 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act. Chapter 8:01.
Following the move by the Prosecutor, Defence Counsel Mr. Williams requested that his client be allowed bail on his own recognizance or in a reasonable sum, since the accused had already spent six years in custody, through no fault of his own.
The judge granted bail in the sum of $25, 000; but because the officers of the Registry had already left for home, Counsel for the accused was assured that the papers for the granting of bail will be prepared today.
The freed 25-year-old accused was remanded to custody until today.