Jury convicts Christ Church man of murder

t took an 11-member jury just over an hour of deliberation to find Raheem Travonte Barnett guilty of murder.

 

The jurors delivered the unanimous verdict around 3:11 p.m. on Thursday before Madam Justice Laurie-Ann Smith-Bovell in the No. 4 Supreme Court.

 

Barnett, of Regency Park, Christ Church, had pleaded not guilty to murdering  O’Neill Chase on October 5, 2019. Chase died two months after being shot in his head close to his Silver Hill, Christ Church home.

 

Justice Smith-Bovell thanked the jury for their service after telling Barnett that he would be kept on remand at Dodds pending sentence. In the meantime, she has ordered a pre-sentence report on his life,  a psychological report, and a behavioural report from the prison.

 

The lawyers in the case — Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Alliston Seale SC and Paul Prescod, and defence lawyers Michael Lashley KC and Jonelle King — will make their submissions on sentencing on January 16, 2025.