Last Updated on March 2, 2020, 8:43 AM AST by Anthony Morris
A daughter whose mother was one of two persons killed in September 1995, expressed shock and anger upon the matter that the man who was arrested for the double murder was released and was awarded millions to compensate damages by the High Court.
It is noteworthy that High Court Judge Godfrey P. Smith ordered that a sum of $8 million total should be paid to Anthony Henry and Francis Noel.
Both of these men were jailed for decades for separate offences on the grounds that they were unfit to plead because of mental illness.
The judgement says that both the men’s right to personal liberty was breached because they should have been kept in a mental health facility instead of prison owing to their mental illness.
The court additionally discovered the fact that their right to personal liberty was infringed because there was no periodic check up and assessment of their mental status to determine whether or not they had recovered in order to plead.
Henry was arrested for an offence of double murder, in September 1995 and was held on remand pending trial for a time of around seven and a half years until his trial on February 7, 2000.
He was unconditionally released by the High Court in May 2019 after serving around 24 years in prison.
Magdalene Ben, rememberers that she was 13 years old at the time when her mother, Carmilite Ben was killed.
She said that she is very unhappy and angry about Henry’s release and the monetary award assigned by the High Court.
Ben said she has not been feeling comfortable in the village of Anse La Raye since Henry’s release. Further, she said that the people in the community are in fear.
According to Ben, there are a lot of people who fear for their lives in the village. No one is feeling comfortable at ease knowing that Henry is out of jail and could just at anytime come back in the village.
Ben said that the situation created by the release of Henry is unfair.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
