Magistrate Hazel Octave-Hamilton on Friday imposed a six-week jail sentence on a man who threatened his ex-partner.
At the Georgetown Magis-trates’ Court, Morris Cox accepted that on June 27, 2012, at Georgetown, he made use of threatening language to Sade Barry, resulting in a breach of peace.
The facts of the prosecution are that on the day in question, Cox went to the home of the complainant with whom he has a daughter. The two are now separated. Barry later arrived and met Cox seated in front of her home and they subsequently had an argument.
The prosecution said Cox ran up the woman’s stairs and told her that he would “push a knife in her belly, stir it up and kill her.” Fearful for her life, Barry reported the threat to the East La Penitence Police Station. Later, while at the station, the court was told, Cox told ranks there that he only threatened to hit the woman’s head to the wall. He was subsequently arrested and charged.
When given a chance to speak, Cox said that he did not threaten to kill Barry. He did, however, admit that he would hit her head. The man said that he and the woman had an exchange of words, during which they both said things to each other but he maintained that he only threatened to hit her head to a wall. Cox said that the woman told him that she would go to the police and tell them that he threatened to kill her.
Magistrate Octave-Hamilton cautioned him that what he told the woman was nonetheless a threat—an offence that she viewed very seriously.
Meanwhile, Barry, who requested to speak, told the court it was not the first time that the defendant had threatened her. She, however, said that it was the first time she had made a report.
The prosecution asked the court to deal with the offence accordingly, while alluding to the many news headlines of domestic abuse and women losing their lives at the hands of their male partners. Cox was subsequently told that he would be imprisoned for six weeks.
