A Greiggs man who designed and created number plates for a vehicle and said the laws of St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) do not apply to him has been fined for four traffic offences.
The man, Alvin Collins, was convicted of driving an unlicensed motor vehicle; driving an uninsured motor vehicle in respect of third-party risks; having no front or rear prescribed number plates, and,
failing to have a driver’s permit in his possession.
“I am not under the jurisdiction of [SVG] and therefore, the laws of SVG do not apply to me,” Collins told Magistrate Kaywana Jacobs at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
On June 6, at the start of the trial, Corporal 112 Bowens, told the Colonarie Magistrate’s Court sitting at Georgetown that he was on duty at the Georgetown Public Road on March 21, about 8 a.m., when he saw a burgundy Toyota jeep travelling from Chester to Georgetown.
The driver was not wearing a seatbelt and the vehicle was fitted with makeshift number plates bearing the characters “YAR001”.
Bowens said he signalled the driver to stop and Collins complied.
Bowens said further checks revealed that there was no licence sticker on the front windshield of the vehicle and Collins said the vehicle was neither licensed nor insured.
Bowens said he called the Licensing Office and they confirmed the chassis number of the vehicle had been assigned registration number “TY254”.
Further, the licensing authorities indicated that the vehicle belonged to the Greiggs Rastafarian Progressive Society, and the vehicle licence was expired.
When the charges were put to him in court, Collins said he accepted them “on conditions”.
However, the magistrate told him there were no conditions and further told the defendant that he seemed unclear about the procedure.
Jacobs further told the defendant that he might need an attorney and that the court would allow him time to retain counsel.
However, Collins said he did not need an attorney and that he would represent himself.
Lawyer Israel Bruce, who was at the bar, said he would engage Collins to get a further understanding of the matter, which Bruce said was “quite interesting and possibly historic”.
After the engagement, there appeared to be some level of understanding and the hearing was to allow Collins to decide if he would retain a lawyer or continue to represent himself.
When the hearing resumed on Monday, Collins said he is the director and attorney for the cooperative.
He said that he was representing himself and presented four documents to the court, namely one showing that he is the director and attorney for the corporation; a certificate of incorporation, a security agreement and another document stamped by the High Court of SVG.
Collins told the court that the certificate of incorporation was done in England. However, the prosecutor, Inspector Junior Nero, objected to it being entered into evidence, saying that it had no relevance to the Constitution of SVG.
The magistrate did not accept the documents as evidence as it was not within the jurisdiction or in accordance with the laws of SVG.
“It does not have any legal standing here,” Jacobs told Collins.
Nero also objected to the other documents and the magistrate did not accept them as evidence as they pertained to the certificate of incorporation, which had no legal standing in SVG.
Collins said the documents were relevant to the traffic charges as they show his status as a man and that he was not acting under the jurisdiction of SVG and as such, the laws of SVG do not apply to him.
However, the prosecutor countered that the Constitution is SVG’s supreme law and speaks to movement, free speech, and the rights of every person in SVG.
Nero asked whether Collins was saying that the Constitution does not apply to him.
Collins said that he is covered by the laws of God, adding that in the Bible, God gives man dominion over everything.
However, the magistrate ruled in favour of the prosecution and did not allow the documents into evidence.
During cross examination by Nero, Collins said that on the day of the incident when Bowens stopped him, although he was in the driver’s seat of the vehicle, where the steering and steering pedals are located, he was “travelling”.
He said he was not the driver as the vehicle was not engaging in commerce.
Nero put it to Collins that he was operating the automobile on the day he was stopped
“Of course,” Collins said.
“So would you consider yourself as a driver or traveler on the date?” Nero asked
“As a traveler operating an automobile,” Collins said
Collins said the vehicle was registered with the state at the Licensing Office in SVG as TY254 and that he also insured the vehicle as “I was driving in commerce”.
He said further that the vehicle was neither licensed nor insured on the day that Bowens stopped him.
Collins told the court that when the police stopped him, the vehicle had the identification mark, “YAR001”, adding that he designed and created the number plate.
“You realised that what you designed and created is different to the one the state gave you?” Nero asked
“Yes,” Collins said.
Nero put it to Collins that the license the state provided for the vehicle at the time he was operating it on March 21 had expired.
The prosecutor further told Collins that when the police stopped him, he did not have a driving permit in his possession.
You agreed to everything that was said?” Nero asked Collins
“Of course. And I accept with conditions,” the defendant said.
The magistrate fined Collins
For affixing front and back identification marks to the vehicle, the magistrate fined Collins EC$300 to be paid in one week or one week in prison
For using the vehicle without the relevant license, Collins was fined EC$250 to be paid in one week or one-week imprisonment
For using the vehicle without insurance in respect to third-party risk, he was fined EC$600 to be paid in two months or one month in prison
The magistrate disqualified Collins from holding or obtaining a driver’s permit for 12 months.
She reprimanded and discharged him on the charge of driving without being the holder of a driver’s permit.
The magistrate informed Collins or his right to appeal.
This guy is what you call a Souverign Citizen
Funny, a traffic violation cannot be paid in installments. Government Judges only looking to make already poor people even poorer.
Did he hurt anyone?
Oh me oh my he got to pay up
Yes Samo if that driver had struck,maimed or killed a family member of yours while driving with no insurance,licence and registration you would of been singing a different song.Two things that are infinite.The universe and human stupidity and I’m not sure about the universe.
The laws does not apply tge sovereign citizens who are the original decedeants of the land Greiggs bis Garinagu territory and must be recognized as such.
Well my brother said he say he go by the order of yah well let’s hear what yah say Romans 13:1 let every soul be subject unto the higher powers for there is no power but of yah:the powers that be is ordained of yah
A window into the chronic state of madness — disassociation from reality — too many of our people are living in.
If, the operative word, if
SVG is becoming a treasure island. Slowly but surely the elites are taking over, never mind if you are trying to defend your family. As a matter of fact you don’t really understand finances unless you are one of these big shot politician, who is in government today; and in the private sector tomorrow. You can be a financial hub but you can change into a financial broker or caretaker.
Maybe that was the same thing the two ghosts that injured CJ in his own ward had said , is it?