A Bequia man who raped a 16-year-old girl has been sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Herald Hamilton, 41, had spent three months and three days on remand when Justice Rickie Burnett sentenced him on Friday at High Court No. 2, in Kingstown.
This means that he must serve a further 15 years, eight months, and 28 days in prison.
iWitness News is withholding the details of Hamilton’s crime to protect the identity of the virtual complainant.
At his trial, Hamilton maintained that the sexual relations with the virtual complainant were consensual.
However, the nine-member jury rejected his defence and found him guilty.
A social inquiry report cited by Justice Burnett during the sentencing said that Hamilton is a beach attendant who grew up in Bequia, where he attended primary school.
He said that he passed the Common Entrance Examination but never attended a secondary school.
The defendant also smokes and drinks recreationally.
He maintained that the intercourse was consensual but apologised and expressed his sorrow for the incident, which he said troubled him, his family and his friends a lot.
The report said that Hamilton got along well with his community. He further said sending him to prison could result in his children suffering.
In handing down his sentence, Justice Burnett noted that the aims of sentencing, namely retribution, deterrence, prevention and rehabilitation.
The judge said Hamilton’s crime had resulted in serious psychological harm to the virtual complainant, who had attempted suicide multiple times.
She resorted to alcohol and marijuana to help her cope and also used drugs to deal with her frustration.
Hamilton faced a maximum of life in prison for his crime, a notional sentence of 30 years.
The judge said he saw no reason to depart from the sentencing guidelines for rape and established a starting point of 15 years.
Among the aggravating features of the crime was the prevalence of sexual offences, Justice Burnett said, noting the number of sex crimes that are on the cause list and that sexual matters are always prevalent during arraignments.
There was no violence beyond that inherent in Hamilton’s crime, the court held.
While it was Hamilton’s first conviction for a sexual offence, he had previous convictions for dishonesty.
The judge held that the aggravating features of the case and the offender outweighed the mitigating factors and added one year to the starting point.
He then subtracted from the sentence the three months and 10 days that Hamilton had spent on remand.