The son of dancehall veteran, Dantay Brooks, and his co-accused Andre Hinds, who had been sentenced to life imprisonment 4 years in the past had been in a position to stroll free at the moment by the Court docket of Attraction because of a trial jude’s error.
The duo was freed by Justices Marva McDonald-Bishop, David Fraser and Kissock Laing, due to the trial choose’s error within the remedy of the identification proof, which was unreliable, and credibility points with the only real eyewitness.
“We’re of the view that the failure of the realized trial choose to adequately warn himself of the hazards inherent within the identification proof mixed with the deficiencies in his remedy of the identification and issues going to the credibility of the prosecution’s sole eyewitness resulted within the candidates being disadvantaged of the safeguards developed by legislation to stop the ‘ghastly threat’ of conviction on unreliable proof of identification,” they mentioned within the printed judgement.
The appellate judges additionally counseled the prosecution for acknowledging the choose’s error and for not in search of a retrial.
Brooks, who was 18 years outdated on the time of his sentencing, was ordered by Justice Leighton Pusey to serve 22 years earlier than parole for the homicide of Lorenzo Thomas.
He was additionally sentenced to fifteen years for arson and 20 years for unlawful possession of a firearm. The sentences had been to run concurrently.
Andre Hines, who was 26 years outdated, was additionally given a life sentence for the homicide with a stipulation that he serve 17 years earlier than parole.
He was sentenced to fifteen years every for arson and unlawful possession of a firearm.
The 2 had been arrested and charged in reference to the home-invasion killing of Thomas within the St Andrew group of Cassava Piece on June 5, 2018.
Prosecutors led proof that Brooks and Hinds had been amongst 5 males who entered the home and shot Thomas earlier than pushing his father into one other room.
They had been accused of trying to sever Thomas’ head earlier than aborting that plan as a result of the machete was too boring.
They then allegedly poured gasoline on the home and the physique earlier than setting each on hearth.
Prosecutors relied on the eyewitness testimony of Thomas’ father, who indicated that he knew his son’s killers from the group.
Lawyer-at-law Hugh Wildman represented Brooks whereas attorneys-at-law Kemar Robinson and Oswest Senior Smith represented Hinds.
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