High Court Justice Albert Redhead has made a ruling that will likely put former legislator Andre Penn in front of a jury for retrial.
Mr. Penn, who is currently on bail, was convicted by a unanimous jury in March 2011 of seven counts of indecent assault, three counts of buggery, and two counts of unlawful sexual intercourse with a girl of or under the age of 13. He was subsequently sentenced to 12 years in prison.
But the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court of Appeal ruled in January that Mr. Penn’s conviction was “unsafe” because High Court Justice Indra Hariprashad-Charles failed to properly instruct the jury in hearing testimony from the alleged victim.
Mr. Penn’s lawyers further argued that his previous trial and subsequent appeal received such extensive coverage in the territory’s media that “a fair retrial would be impossible,” according to court records.
But Mr. Redhead disagreed. In his ruling, which was handed down on July 9, he said for the appeal to be valid the applicants would need to show that such publications would have biased jurors. He stated that a juror would not be disqualified for merely reading allegations in a news publication.
“I do not recall, or was shown anything in the newspaper reports or articles which would be regarded as irresponsible publication by way of an attack on the personal character of the applicant,” the High Court judge wrote in his ruling. “I may say, however, some of the bloggers on the online newspapers [expressed personal], prejudicial and inflammatory opinions… .”
Edward Fitzgerald, QC, and Patrick Thompson represent Mr. Penn. Mr. Redhead ordered the defendant to stand trial in the next criminal assizes.
See the Aug. 16, 2012 edition for full coverage.
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