| A total of 41 matters received attention in the October 2015 Demerara Criminal Assizes.Five judges, Justice Jo-Ann Barlow, Justice Priya Sewnarine-Beharry, Justice Navindra Singh, Justice Roxane George and Justice Dawn Gregory presided over matters in that session.Of these 41 matters, 30 were presented in the Georgetown High Court. Ten of them were completed by Justice Barlow, eight matters were heard before by Justice Sewnarine-Beharry, six were completed by Justice Singh, five matters completed by Justice George and one matter was completed by Justice Dawn Gregory.Eleven matters were nolle prosequi by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) based on statements given by the virtual complainants. One matter was presented and nolle prosequi in open court by the Judge.Justice Barlow presided over 10 matters for the offence of Rape of a Child under 16 years;Attempt to Commit Murder; Felonious Wounding; Rape and Carnal Knowledge of Girl between 15 and 16 years; Carnal Knowledge of Girl under 15 years; Manslaughter; Murder; Rape; Assault Causing Actual Bodily Harm; Forgery; Larceny in Dwelling House and Fraudulent Conversion.In three matters for the offences of Rape of a Child under 16 years, Attempt to Commit Murder and Felonious Wounding, Rape and Carnal Knowledge of Girl between 15 and 16 years, the complainants went into the witness box and indicated that they no longer wished to give evidence or to proceed with their matters. As such, Justice Barlow directed the Jury to return formal verdicts of not guilty for the accused.Justice Priya Sewnarine-BeharryJustice Navindra SinghJustice Dawn GregoryAn accused was acquitted for the offence of Carnal Knowledge after the jury returned a unanimous verdict of not guilty.In three separate matters for the offences of Manslaughter, Forgery and Larceny in Dwelling House and Fraudulent Conversion, the trial judge upheld no case submissions and directed the respective Jury to return formal verdicts of not guilty.An accused charged with Murder changed his plea to guilty of manslaughter and was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment. In another murder case, the accused was sentenced to 25years imprisonment after the jury returned a majority verdict in proportion 10 guilty to two not guilty.In one matter for the offence of Rape and Assault Causing Actual Bodily Harm, the accused was sentenced to 23 years’ imprisonment after the jury returned a majority verdict of 11 guilty to one not guilty.Justice Sewnarine-Beharry presided over eight matters. Three were for the offence of Carnal Knowledge of Girl under 15 years, two for the offence of Sexual Activity with A Child Family Member, one for the offence of Attempt to Commit Murder and Wounding with Intent, one matter for the offence of Incest and Carnal Knowledge of Girl under 15 years and one matter for the offence of Murder.In the offence of Carnal Knowledge of Girl under 15 years, the complainant gave evidence from the witness box that she did not wish to proceed with the matter. The trial judge directed the jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty.In another trial for the same offence the accused was sentenced to 20 years jail after the jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict. The accused in the third matter was acquitted after the trial Judge upheld a no case submission and directed the Jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty.In one of the two cases for the offence of Sexual Activity with A Child Family Member, the complainant offered no evidence and the Judge directed the jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty. In the other matter the accused was found guilty and will be sentenced later this month.Judge Sewnarine-Beharry directed the Jury to return a formal not guilty verdict for the offence of attempt to commit murder and wounding with intent after the complainant offered no evidence.For the offence of Incest and Carnal Knowledge of Girl under 15 years,Wholesale NFL Jerseys, the accused was acquitted after the Jury returned a majority verdict of 11 not guilty to one guilty.For the offence of Murder, the Jury failed to reach a verdict and the accused was remanded back to prison to await a new trial.Of the six matters presented before Justice Navindra Singh, five were for the offence of Murder and one for Attempt to Commit Murder with an alternative count of Wounding with Intent. Of the five matters for the offence of Murder, there were four guilty verdicts and one acquittal after the Jury returned a unanimous verdict of not guilty.In a murder case, the accused was sentenced to 57 years’ imprisonment by Justice Singh after he was found guilty by the jury. In another Murder trial, the jury found that the accused was not guilty of Murder but guilty of the lesser offence of Manslaughter. The accused was sentenced to 25 years in prison.Justice Singh imposed an 81-year jail sentence on each of four accused of murder after the Jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts. In another trial for the same offence, the accused was jailed for 80 years after the jury returned with a unanimous guilty verdict.In the only matter for the offence of Attempt to Commit Murder with an alternative count of Wounding with Intent, the accused was remanded to prison after he pleaded guilty to three indictments, two of which he was before the Court to answer. However, during the proceedings, the accused told the trial Judge a story and based on that story Justice Singh did not accept his guilty plea and remanded him to prison.Justice Roxane George completed five matters. Two were for the offence of Murder, one for the offence of Rape of a Child under 16 Years, one for the offence of Sexual Activity with A Child Family Member.There was also one for the offence of Attempt to Commit Murder with an alternative count of Wounding with Intent to Cause Grievous Bodily Harm.In four separate trials, two for the offence of Murder, one for the offence of Rape of a Child under 16 years and one other matter for the offence of Sexual Activity with A Child Family Member, the accused were acquitted after the respective Jury returned unanimous verdicts of not guilty.Meanwhile, the complainant in the one matter for the offence of Attempt to Commit Murder with an alternative count of Wounding with Intent to Cause Actual Bodily Harm, the witness did not give evidence and the state entered a nolle prosequi in open court.Justice Dawn Gregory had continued sitting from the June Assizes and completed one matter for the offence of Buggery. The accused in this matter was sentenced to 18 years’ imprisonment after being found guilty.The January 2016 Criminal Assizes for Demerara will open on January 12. |
