An inquiry by Senior Magistrate Tammika McKenzie about how a St. Lucian who she had ordered to be remanded in prison was repatriated without the court’s permission has ended in frustration.
McKenzie had heard the evidence of acting Superintendent of Prison Dwayne Bailey, Deputy Commissioner of Police Frankie Joseph, Senior Immigration Officer Veronica Harry, and prosecutor acting Sergeant of Police Shamrock Pierre at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court before concluding on Monday that she had been “spinning top in mud all day”.
The following day, again confronted by that reality, she granted the prosecution’s application to withdraw the charge against the St. Lucian accused.
Roderick Jones, the lawyer for the St. Lucian, Chester King, said he was concerned, adding that a court order must have some weight.
“And I take great offence that this court could have made an order and the powers that be treat this court’s order with scant regard,” the lawyer said as the proceeding moved to an end without the court any wiser about how King was removed from the country.
However, the magistrate said the day would come when things would change, noting that during the sitting that day, the court had also heard about warrants and summonses that had not been served.
“Nobody is held accountable,” Mc Kenzie said. “A day will come when accountability will take shape in a way that nobody expects.”
Jones had begun saying what would happen if the private citizen had done what the authorities did in removing King from the country.
“They will not be given the same benefit,’ the magistrate said, completing Jones’ sentence.
“We cannot expect people to respect the judicial system when the state is complicit in disregarding it,” Jones said.
The magistrate said that nobody contacted her regarding the prisoner, noting that the police would contact her at 2 a.m. if they needed permission to remove a body.
“But it’s a good thing. Your hands are clean. You weren’t a part of this,” Jones said.
St. Lucian had alleged police brutality
Police arrested the St. Lucian man in Chateaubelair on Feb. 9, and immigration charges were brought against him.
He appeared in court on Feb. 12 and Jones applied for bail, which was denied. Mc Kenzie ordered that King be remanded in prison pending bail review on Feb. 24 and the trial was set for March 4.
iWitness News was reliably informed that King had alleged that police had beaten him in Chateaubelair to the point that he had defecated on himself.
Jones had requested that King see a private doctor, which was refused.
The lawyer also wrote to acting Commissioner of Police Enville Williams requesting the names of the officers involved in the alleged assault, saying he intended to ask the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to bring criminal charges against them.
When the case was called on Monday, the police officer at the court called for him and then reported to the court that he was not present.
After this was done a few more times, the magistrate asked about King’s whereabouts, noting that she had ordered that he be remanded in prison.
She said the Police Process Department must, therefore, account for him. The officers then told the court that King was no longer in prison as a production order had been issued for his release into the custody of the police.
Police went to prison for King — Prison chief
Mc Kenzie noted that a court order was in effect and summoned acting Superintendent of Prison Dwayne Bailey to explain why King was not in prison.
Bailey told the court that two police officer had come to the prison on Feb. 21, saying that they were there to collect King.
“My last information about him is that he was wanted in St. Lucia for attempted murder and he was sent back to St. Lucia,” the prison boss told the court.
He said he was informed that the charges against King in SVG had been withdrawn.
Immigration says King at prison
The magistrate’s next move was to summon Harry, who told the court that she did not know where King was, adding that he should be in prison.
The magistrate stood down the matter so that the senior immigration officer could check to see if King had checked out of SVG.
“I don’t think the Superintendent of Prisons will have that info. I can ask him,” the magistrate told Harry.
“As far as I understand, his officers got a document, ‘Produce the man!’ They produced the man and he left.”
Meanwhile, Jones suggested that the court request the presence of the chief immigration officer and further asked about whether the DPP would also be summoned.
The lawyer noted that the production order was signed by a justice of the peace (JP) and “not even by a magistrate”.
The senior magistrate said she would like to know how the JP got the production warrant to sign in the first place.
Mc Kenzie further said the court wanted to know the name of the police officer who had taken the document to the JP to have it signed, noting that the JP’s number – 211 — was clear and accompanied “by some scratches”.
Prosecutor did not know charges were withdrawn
Meanwhile, Pierre, speaking from the bar table, told the court that the DPP had written on the file on Feb. 20 and hence the charges against King were still live before the court.
The prosecutor said it was strange to hear that the matter was withdrawn.
“I don’t know if the Criminal Procedure Code has changed and anybody else can withdraw matters,” Pierre said sarcastically.
Deputy commissioner ordered document be prepared
The next witness to take the stand was Corporal of Police 572 Peters, the officer in charge of the process team at the Kingstown Magistrate Court
Peters told the court that on Feb. 21, sometime in the morning, he was at the Process Office when the deputy commissioner of police instructed him to prepare a production order in the name of Chester King.
The corporal said that the deputy police chief instructed him to get the production order signed and to take it to the prisons.
Peters said he did so and on arrival at the prisons, he handed over the document to Senior Prison Officer Durrant and left.
Peters said that the production order was to get King out of custody but he was not told who was to receive the prisoner or where he was to be taken.
The corporal confirmed that he had selected on the form the option indicating that King was to be released from prison to answer to a charge.
Responding to Jones’ question, Peters said that depending on the circumstances, they would prepare a production order, take it to the prison and leave it there.
He said this is done in instances in which police from another district would collect the prisoner at the prisons.
The officer said that in instances where a non-national was to appear in court in Kingstown, either the immigration or police might pick up the prisoner at the prisons and take him to court.
Peters said there would be communication between Process and the person or department requesting the production order.
He said that when collecting a prisoner, the process department usually ticks the section of the form that says the prisoner is being taken to answer a charge.
The corporal said that when he ticked that option, he did not know whether King was being brought to court.
However, the senior magistrate noted that the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court was not sitting on that day and that Peters ought to have known this.
Jones told Peters:
“You knew that there was no court in Kingstown and when you chose to tick ‘B’ saying he was to be brought to court, you are misrepresenting information.”
Peters did not comment.
Prosecutor testifies that charges not withdrawn
After Peter’s testimony, Jones suggested to the court that the deputy commissioner of police be summoned.
In the meantime, the prosecutor took the stand and told the court under oath that disclosure was prepared and served on Jones’ firm on Feb. 17, ahead of the Feb. 18 deadline ordered by the court.
Pierre testified that he had had a conversation with the DPP, Sejilla McDowall and based on that conversation, no instructions had been given for the charges against King to be withdrawn.
“There was no communication with any other entity with respect to this defendant,” Pierre told the court.
“This matter was set for trial on March 4 and to the best of my knowledge is still a live matter before this court.”
Pierre said the information of the DPP was that she had not had any communication with any other state entity, whether immigration or otherwise, in relation to the matter.
He told the court that the DPP was not available, hence he was giving that evidence.
However, Jones asked Pierre if he was privy to every communication that the DPP has.
“I won’t say that. It is my evidence that based on the conversation I had with the DPP, there was no communication,” the prosecutor said, adding that he had spoken to the DPP that day.
Immigration says AG ordered withdrawal of charges
In her testimony, Harry told the court that the chief immigration officer had informed her that she had acted on instructions from the attorney general to withdraw the charges against King.
“This is getting better,” Jones commented.
About the same time, Pierre, who had returned to the bar table, said, “This is ‘Prison Break’?”
Deputy COP instructed an officer to prepare a production order without knowing who it was for
When the deputy police chief took the stand, he testified under oath that on Feb. 21, sometime in the morning, he got a call from Bailey that there was a St. Lucian at the prison and two police officers were there to pick him up to take him back to St. Lucia but they had come without a production order.
Joseph said he asked Bailey the name of the St. Lucian and the prison boss said he could not remember.
The deputy police chief testified that he told Bailey he would get Process to work on a production order.
“I went to the process office. I met Corporal Peters along with other officers there. I explained to him what the SOP had told me. And I told him to get a production order to take to the prison.
“He asked me the name of the person and I told him that the SOP did not give me the name so he could find out the name of the St. Lucian that’s there to be sent back to St. Lucia.”
Joseph told the court that he was told that no magistrate was available to sign the production order.
“As a result, I called Mr. Kenneth John, who is a JP and asked him if he could sign the production order for someone who is in prison. He said yes. And as a result, I sent Corporal Peters to his workplace to sign the production order. That is my involvement in the matter.”
Joseph said that he did not see the production order that Peters prepared.
He, however, said he told Peters that the reason for the production order was because the prisoner was to be sent back to St. Lucia.
Joseph said he did not know that there were matters before the court in relation to the person for whom the production order was to be prepared.
The deputy commissioner said he only knew what Bailey told him, adding that he did not know who the prisoner was or the people who were there to collect him.
The prosecutor said he had no questions for the deputy commissioner.
However, responding to Jones’ questions, Joseph said that except he had given the instruction, he would not know that a police officer had turned up at the prison to collect a prisoner.
He further said it was not normal for him as deputy commissioner to instruct Process to prepare a production order simply because the prisons had called and said someone had come without a production order to collect a prisoner.
“It was the first time I was hearing from the SOP that the police turned up without the production order…” Joseph said.
He said the fact that SOP told him that the prisoner would be discharged in the custody of the police was enough for him to instruct Process to prepare the production order.
Joseph told the court that to the best of his knowledge, when a foreign prisoner who has no status in SVG is being released from His Majesty’s Prisons, the person would be released in the custody of the police.
Magistrate ‘now more confused than anything else’
On hearing the deputy commissioner’s testimony, the magistrate said she was “now more confused than anything else.
“Do you know how the person left the state at all? Because immigration said they have no record of the person leaving the state. So, it seems that this person may be in police custody somewhere,” the magistrate told Joseph.
He, however, said that the evidence he had given was his involvement in the matter.
Joseph told the court that he did not know whether King was still in SVG or had left the country.
Prosecutor attempts to withdraw charge
After the deputy commissioner’s testimony, Pierre told the court that the prosecution was withdrawing the charges against King.
“Are you taking this position because immigration said they are not offering any evidence?” the magistrate asked Pierre.
He said he was taking that position “based on instructions”
“So, I just wasted my whole day trying to understand why a Chester King is not here for you to come tell me that.”
Pierre responded that the inquiry was to ascertain how King left.
But the senior magistrate told Pierre that she did not know that King left, adding that Immigration had said they had no record of him leaving SVG.
Pierre, however, said his information was that King had since been charged with a capital offence in his country and had been taken to court for it.
Jones, however, said that the court’s interest was in what happens in SVG.
“The question still remains, who gave the instructions? The deputy could not assist us,” Jones said.
The senior magistrate then said that she would wait to see documentation on the prosecution’s request to withdraw the charge and adjourned the matter to the following day.
Jones asked if the magistrate was summoning the chief immigration officer and the commissioner of police.
“How is that going to get us any closer?” Mc Kenzie asked the lawyer.
“Because somebody needs to say who gave instructions to remove him,” Jones said.
“I can only tell you what it appears from this vantage point: we’ve been spinning top in mud all day,” Mc Kenzie said.
“Everybody comes and they give you a different version of something that happened.”
But Jones urged the magistrate to continue the inquiry, saying, “The top of the fountain must have the answer, your honour.”
Mc Kenzie responded: “That’s what we hoped in relation to the chief immigration officer.”
Magistrate scolds immigration officer
She said she was taking Harry’s word that the chief immigration officer had said that she gave instructions for the matter to be withdrawn.
“I don’t know it would be beneficial to have the commissioner come to tell me who officer went to receive the person,” Mc Kenzie said.
“I find it very disturbing, or maybe it is above his level of clearance, for the information as regards how the prisoner left the state to have been repatriated came about. But, look on the bright side, when you were here the last time, what did you say? The prosecution objected to bail; they are saying that this person entered SVG illegally. What we want is for them to get back out of St. Vincent.”
“Exactly!” said one of the immigration officers seated in the courtroom.
“No! Don’t tell me ‘Exactly!’ because that is not how it is supposed to work,” the senior magistrate retorted in an intense voice.
“You are taking the court and you are making it a pappy show and wasting everybody’s time. I don’t appreciate it.”
On Tuesday, the magistrate allowed the prosecution to withdraw the charges against King.
Check with St Lucia to see if he arrived alive and kicking
Any proof that Chester King ever left SVG? Is he in St. Lucia, The fact that his lawyer was about to file charges for police brutality something doesn’t feel right about this matter.
You all a bunch of a s s….
Also police beating is nothing new
How you all want information when you beating up the public ppl????
So, I need 10 minutes of my life to fully understand this news article?
This article makes no sense it is confusing at best. It can be best described as a journalism puzzle. It’ is neither simplified but filled with paradox.