REGIONAL: Court releases ‘to time spent’ man convicted of killing Barbadian university student

SOURCE: CMC- A High Court judge, Friday released “with immediate effect to time spent” Sherman Randolph Webb, who had earlier been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of a 23-year-old Barbadian-born University of the West Indies (UWI) student more than 10 years ago in a “bizarre” case that involved satanic ritual and a “cold, callous, brutal” slaying.

“Sherman Webb, please stand, I sentence you for the offense of man-slaughter of Corey Poleon contrary to the offense against the Persons Act Chapter 1031 of the Dominica Revised Laws 1990 to time served, you are hereby released from the Dominica State Prison with immediate effect to time spent,” said Justice Wynante Adrien-Roberts.

Webb, of Kings Hill, just east of the capital, was convicted in 2012 of the murder of his “Bajan friend” Poleon, but was later granted a retrial by the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC).

During the 2012 trial, the court had heard that between August 31, 2009, and March 18, 2010, in the east Roseau community of Elms Hall, Webb killed Poleon, who was visiting Webb in Dominica after the two met on the Internet.

Poleon’s family members had reported him missing following his failure to return home to Barbados. His remains were later found beneath the floorboards of a small wooden house in River Claire, Elms Hall, where Webb had taken Poleon and  “chopped him on both sides of his neck” causing him to bleed to death.

Webb had maintained his innocence, claiming that Poleon came to visit him in August 2009 to conduct an “occult ceremony which involved the summoning of a demon” which would allow Poleon to receive his own guardian spirit.

He told the court during his 2012 trial that Poleon had returned to Dominica after an initial visit and two days after his arrival, they went up to a small house in Elms Hall to conduct the ceremony.

Justice  Bernie Stephenson, who sentenced Webb to life in prison had described the facts of the case as “unusual and unfortunate and bizarre.”

She described the killing of Poleon as “cold, callous, brutal, calculated and heinous” and that the court needed to send a strong message to society that such acts would not be tolerated.

In his appeal against the sentence, Webb argued he had acted in self-defence and the Appeal Court concluded that the High Court judge did not properly put to the jury the issue of self-defense.

In May last year, Webb appeared before Justice Adrien- Roberts on a charge of manslaughter and pleaded guilty.

Justice Adrien-Roberts in sentencing Webb, used 15 years as the “benchmark” even as she acknowledged that the “court finds no mitigating factors of the offense.

“As it related to the aggravating factors, the court found that the accused hid the body of the deceased in a remote area where it could not be found and for that reason, the court adjusts the sentencing upwards by a year. As regards the mitigating and aggravating factors of the offender, he gave cooperation to and assisted the police”.

The judge said that in assessing the discount, the court must give consideration to the time the assistance was given and the quality of the assistance given.

He is also a “first-time offender” is “remorseful” having expressed remorse for his actions and indicated to the social welfare officer that he has also written to the family of the deceased in Barbados expressing his remorse.

She said prisoners also regarded him as “an advisor at the prison to them” assisting them with their paperwork and for these mitigating factors.

“I have examined the chronology of events in this matter and do find that there was a lag in the prosecuting of this matter, it being returned to the High Court on July 5, 2016, for a retrial, the defender remained at the State Prison on a charge of murder until he was indicted on May 4, 2021, on a charge of man-slaughter was pleaded guilty to that charge when it was read to him,” she said. The judge further reduced the sentence by three months and because of the guilty plea, reduced the sentence by five years and one month.

Justice Adrien-Roberts said Webb had so far spent 4,156 days in prison since September 16, 2010, which is 11 years 4 months, and 18 days.