Prime Minister and Minister of Legal Affairs, Ralph Gonsalves, on Thursday, offered to give law lessons to the lawyer representing the model at the heart of an ongoing scandal said to also include the family of his son, Minister of Finance, Camillo Gonsalves.
Lawyer Grant Connell acted pro bono for the model, Yugge Farrell, 22, who was on Friday sent to a psychiatric hospital for two weeks’ evaluation.
Farrell was institutionalised notwithstanding strong objections by Connell who had noted to Magistrate Bertie Pompey at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court that the prosecution had presented no evidence in support of its application that Farrell should be sent to the Mental Health Centre.
Farrell had pleaded not guilty to a charge that last Thursday, Jan. 4, she used abusive language to Karen Duncan-Gonsalves –Camillo’s wife – to wit, “you dirty b***h”.
“And as an experienced lawyer in this business, I am just amazed as to how the defence counsel in that matter acted,” said Gonsalves, who was called to the bar more than 30 years ago.
He told the radio audience that Connell should call him if he wants to know how he should have acted in the interest of his client.
“I wouldn’t give him a free lesson on the telephone — on the radio,” the prime minister said.
Gonsalves said he would like for Connell to come have a cup of coffee with him at an appropriate time and he would draw all the law to his attention and tell him how he should have acted in the interest of his client.
“I am not saying that the magistrate would not have done the same thing you know, to order the young lady to be detained. But I will just teach him a little something as to how it should’ve been done.”
Members of the public have used the media to protest the decision of the court to have Farrell sent to the psychiatric hospital although the prosecution gave no reason to support its application.
But Gonsalves said the court may get information from the police to make a determination which is “not necessarily canvassed inside the open court because you have to be concerned most of all about the patient, the person, and you don’t want, in anyway, to prejudice their health or circumstances and that is the long and short of the story.”
Farrell is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 22.
What could Mrs Gonsalves have done to this young lady for her to call by such name .
That is the “back story” we will possibly never hear. It is the information that the Gonsalves Dynasty do not want the people to know. They want us to think that this young lady just comes “out of the blue” to terrorize the innocent, defenseless, people-loving Gonsalves family for just no reason.
Ralph Gonsalves says the letter this young lady wrote was full of lies. Gonsalves himself, as Prime Minister does not have a very good track record of telling the truth, so his statement means little to the people of Saint Vincent.
I believe that the young lady needs help but I disagree with sending her to the mental home. I believe that she should have been instructed by the court to stay at home for a period of time and that a private doctor should have been appointed to do an analysis of her condition and that the report to be sent to the magistrate, prosecutor, the defense attorney and her immediate family. A guardian should have been appointed by the court to be responsible for her during the time of the analyzing and the report presented to the court. No one should be just be just sent to mental Home unless they are a danager to the public or to themselves. In hindsight I am sure Grant realized he should have bargained for something better than what the Magestrate instructed. No one took the time to think this matter over, therefore, a quick fix was made which in my opinion backfired. In matters line this one, many depts need to get together to discuss and com up with the best possible answers to save our young people. The stigma of just throwing her out to the mental health center alone can demoralize the young lady which can cause more harm than good. Maybe the idea of offering her a scholarship when she first showed signs of promise in her profession would have been a good gesture and motivation. Instead we put the cart before the horse hoping no one will observe.
Gonsalves wants to give lessons to Grant Connell but we have to first observe our “Justice System” or rather “just us” system. Grant Connell always assumes that the system will work in accordance will law and justice but….”Welcome to the Caribbean”! No evidence of Mental Illness or anything that suggests it was presented in Court so how could this ruling have occured? Gonsalves gloating over Connell’s inability to get justice for this young girl was apparently or possibly the result of something that transpired behind closed doors before the trial, NOT IN COURT! and would, therefore, be considered a miscarriage of justice in any country that goes by the rule of law. That is the main reason the country is so appalled at this incident. Connell did not even have the information that Ralph Gonsalves had regardless of if all or even any of what Gonsalves says is true, (remember never to assume that anything coming from a politician is true especially because they will do absolutely anything to save their skin).
Instead, I suggest Grant Connell give Ralph Gonsalves lessons on fair play, Justice, honesty and respect for the people. The Gonsalves Family has apparently lost these elements of humanity, even though they talk about them for perception purposes.
The prime minister need to recuse himself from this matter. Here the whole Gunsalves family come out against this young woman.
The prime minister needs a lesson on how to treat woman.
When it was alleged that he repe the police woman it was the same ridicule he put the woman through.
The women of SVG should launch #me to movement against the PM if they were sexually harassed by him.For i know there are many.
What an insult, here we have a brilliant young specialist criminal lawyer who has never been accused or charged with any filth or any sex accusations being offered lessons by a man who is way behind him in brilliance.
The PM is right the lawyer did not act in the interest of his client. There is such a thing as an injunction then stay of execution for a judgement then judicial review. Am no lawyer but am just saying the PM is spot on in his comments. I suggest the lawyer sit with the PM to learn a trick or two because no man is an island.
Is Vincy becoming a comedian show .First of all the young lady should not be in the Mental asylum in the first place.I’m confused the Judge assumed her head is not right by sending her to the mental asylum.And the pm is offering to send her University.Real comedian show.I think in cases like this persons are charge a fine or hard community service or apology.Mental asylum oh no!.Yugge Farrell you are a very Intelligent girl.
Perhaps the magistrate was simply acting on the instructions of others in making that order.
Hope you guys remember this one Who E hut E hut .