The trial of Jevon “IG” Demming and Sherman “Herb Man” Williams for attempted murder began Wednesday with testimony from the alleged victim.

 

Neil St. Rose told a High Court jury that Mr. Demming punched him and made him fall to his knees, and then Mr. Williams put a gun to the side of his neck and shot him outside of the Rock Café in The Valley, Virgin Gorda, on the early morning of Sept. 30, 2012.

Mr. St. Rose, a mechanic who works in North Sound, said he went to the bar for a dance that night.

He said he had several drinks and danced with a few women. When he was standing on the side of the dance floor, he said, he felt someone push him in the back.

The St. Lucia native said he turned to see Mr. Demming standing there.

“What’s going on?” the complainant allegedly asked him.

The room was too loud for Mr. St. Rose to hear Mr. Demming’s response, but the defendant and his two cousins surrounded him, according to the complainant.

No fight broke out, but when the alleged victim was leaving the club later that night, he said, he saw Mr. Williams standing at the bottom of the steps facing him.

The alleged shooter wouldn’t get out of his way, Mr. St. Rose explained, so he pushed him and tried to go to his vehicle.

That’s when he heard a shot behind him and turned around to see Mr. Williams with a gun in his hand, he claimed.

Mr. St. Rose picked up a stone to defend himself, but dropped it when Mr. Williams continued to walk towards him with the gun pointed in the air, he testified.

He also said he saw Mr. Demming approaching him. When he started backing up from him, Mr. Williams hit him in the back of the neck with the pistol, he said.

The armed assailant then held Mr. St. Rose by the collar while Mr. Demming struck him in the nose, causing him to fall to his knees, according to the complainant.

Then Mr. Williams allegedly put the gun to Mr. St. Rose’s neck and pulled the trigger.

Police testimony

Police Detective Wendell Valentine also gave evidence in the trial, saying that he arrived at the scene around 9:50 a.m. that morning to find a spent 0.40-calibre casing, some jewellery, a cap, and something he suspected to be a projectile.

The detective took photos from the scene that were shown in court.

Stephen Daniels, the defence attorney for Mr. Williams, asked Mr. Valentine whether he took any DNA evidence from the projectile that links it to the alleged victim, and the detective said he did not.

The attorney asked if any testing was done to the 0.40-calibre shell to ensure its authenticity, and the jury asked whether he lifted a fingerprint from the shell. To both questions, Mr. Valentine answered in the negative.

Finally, Mr. Daniels asked him if any gunpowder residue was taken from his client’s hands or clothes. Again, the answer was no.

“So basically, you just came here to show us these photos,” Mr. Daniels said.

Principal Crown Counsel Tiffany Scatliffe asked the officer why he didn’t do a DNA test on the projectile or fingerprint the shell.

He responded that he didn’t have an explanation for why he didn’t test the projectile, but the reason he didn’t fingerprint the shell was because prints are often lost from the heat when the gun is fired – though not always.

“Did you attempt to lift a print?” the prosecutor asked.

“No,” he said.

Mr. Williams remains on remand while Mr. Demming is out on bail during the trial.