Barbados Today

“Just stay out of trouble!”

Attorney-at-law Arthur Holder gave that advice to his client Anderson Busby, moments after he walked out of the Supreme Court a free man after beating a manslaughter case today.

At exactly 5:38 p.m. this evening, Justice Randall Worrell told the 34-year-old Busby that he was free to go after a 12-member jury unanimously found him not guilty of unlawfully killing Devon Taylor, formerly of Gills Road, St Michael, on October 13, 2012.

The jury deliberated for two hours and eight minutes before bringing back the decision.

“Madam foreman and all your members, I thank you,” Busby said as he stood in the dock.

When asked by members of the media for a comment, a smiling Busby replied, “I don’t want to talk, I just want to spend some time with my family”.

He then walked out the courtroom and the Supreme Court embraced by two women, said to be family members.

Busby then stopped for a short while to shake hands with Arthur and Rhea Layne, his legal representatives, before being hugged by a male who was on the outskirts of the court.

But his road to freedom today was not before a question by the jury to clarify their seeming uncertainty. Before giving their verdict, the jury sought the direction of Justice Worrell after they were unable to unanimously agree after deliberating for two hours.

They queried if they should be guided by whether the prosecutor had proved its case or whether it was a case of self defence.

Justice Worrell advised them that their decision should be based on all the evidence that had been presented during the three-week long trial.

“If you find based on the evidence that he was acting in lawful self defence then you cannot find him guilty and if you have any doubt then you have to find him not guilty,” Justice Worrell said.

“If you find that he did not need to defend himself then self defence does not arrive. If the force was more than reasonably necessary then he was not acting in self defence and you have to return a verdict of guilty.”

At that point, Justice Worrell said the court would accept a majority verdict.

Five minutes later the jury returned with their verdict.

Principal Crown Counsel Alliston Seale appeared on behalf of the Crown.

The court had heard during the trial that Taylor who was 16-years-old at the time, died after sustaining six stab wounds to the left side of his body and lost eight litres of blood after being involved in a brawl.

Throughout the trial, Busby had maintained his innocence, claiming that he had acted in self defence after being attacked by Taylor.

Dr Margaret O’Shea, part of the medical team that performed surgery on Taylor at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) testified that there was a laceration to the deceased’s chest, a major vein was totally cut in his chest and there were four litres of blood left in his chest cavity.

Dr O’Shea, who performed two surgeries on Busby, also testified that Busby received life-threatening injuries.

She said Busby had sustained injuries to his stomach, pancreas and kidney and had lost 3.5 litres of blood.
randybennett@barbadostoday.bb