Danny Lamar Husbands no longer has a murder charge hanging over his head after Madam Justice Pamela Beckles on Thursday agreed with a no-case submission made by his attorney.
Husbands, of Ferniehurst, Black Rock, St Michael, had been charged with the September 4, 2020, murder of Oluremi Young at Oistins Bay Garden.
After Principal State Counsel Olivia Davis and State Counsel Eleazar Williams closed their case against Husbands due to the non-appearance of several witnesses, defence attorney Angella Mitchell-Gittens SC made submissions before the judge, in the absence of the jury.
She argued that the evidence led before the court did not show any connection between Young’s death and her client.
“The video evidence does not show any contact between him and the deceased. Oluremi Young goes by the bar and the accused goes by the bar, and several other persons are present, but the evidence does not assist us. There is no confession or admission in respect of this matter,” Mitchell-Gittens said.
She noted that while an eyewitness saw Husbands either cuffing or flaring off his hands near Young, the latter continued to dance and some time later fell to the ground. That witness did not see any weapon in the hands of the accused, the defence lawyer pointed out.
“Even if there is a cuff, there is no relationship between the cuff and the fatal injury. There is no weapon in the hands of Husbands. No evidence was led as to where on the body of the deceased did this cuffing take place or if it was close to where the injuries are supposed to have occurred . . . . No ID, no forensics, no confession,” she stressed.
Though admitting this was “a circumstantial case”, Davis outlined that there were cases when a weapon was not found at all but that was not enough to stop a case.
“There was no objection to the oral statements in this case. With respect to the video, it is for the jury to determine what it means to them having watched it,” the prosecutor said.
She pointed to the Court of Appeal’s directions regarding a circumstantial case where the court pointed out the important portions of the case and indicated that this should be to the level of beyond a reasonable doubt.
Giving her decision in favour of the defence, Justice Beckles stated, “I am satisfied that there is not sufficient evidence . . . . I am of the view that the evidence produced by the prosecution is so inherently weak that no jury properly directed could convict the accused man, and, therefore, under these circumstances, there is justification to take this case away from the jury. The prosecution has not established a prima facie case on this count of murder. As a result, the submission of no case is upheld for all the reasons outlined by counsel for the accused.”
“Having read the file by itself, if the evidence had followed, it would have been a case – but it didn’t. Six witnesses did not come forward . . . . I cannot in good conscience allow this case to go before the jury,” the judge added.
When the 12-member jury returned, the judge directed the foreman to give a not-guilty verdict.
