Christ Church resident Jamar Kareem Ramsay has been remanded to Dodds Prison on a charge of failing to adhere to one of his bail conditions imposed by the High Court.
The 32-year-old from Browne’s Gap, Sergeants Village is charged that between September 29, 2023 and August 30, 2024, while being a person released on bail on June 16, 2023, he failed to report to Hastings/Worthing Police Station every Friday by 10 am, without reasonable cause.
Ramsay pleaded not guilty to the charge before Chief Magistrate Ian Weekes on Tuesday.
Sergeant Randolph Boyce, referring to the new Bail Act, in objecting to bail stated that Ramsay was on bail from the High Court in relation to a firearm case with conditions and “he is making a mockery of the judicial system, a mockery of the bail system. A mockery.”
The prosecutor added: “This is serious. People are taking this as a joke . . . and this is not personal to him . . .The court is a serious place. . .
“If the court does not show the accused that the conditions are important, they will continue to break it and people will lose confidence in the judicial system.”
But in her submissions, Senior Counsel Angela Mitchell-Gittens said while she understood there was a new Bail Act those in the system must “remember the basic principle of innocence until proven guilty. He has said he is not guilty”.
The defence attorney also pointed out that based on the “charge sheet, I don’t know what it means, if he didn’t report one time or several times”.
She argued that despite the allegation her client was fit and proper candidate for bail as he has not missed a court date in either the magistrates’ court or the High Court even as she admitted that her client is on a firearm charge for which he has pleaded guilty and granted bail and which is scheduled to be fully adjudicated later this month.
In making his decision Chief Magistrate Weekes also referring to the new Bail Act ruled that Ramsay would be remanded until September 23.
