Orin Jerrick was yesterday sentenced to 28 years in jail after a jury convicted him on the lesser count of manslaughter for the death of Plaisance minibus driver Gavin Fiffee.
The jury unanimously found him not guilty on the charge of murdering Fiffee, but after three hours of deliberations returned a guilty verdict in an 11 to 1 proportion in favour of the lesser count of manslaughter.
In handing down sentence, Justice Navindra Singh, who presided over the trial, registered his disappointment with Jerrick for his lack of remorse.
The judge noted that while his attorney made a passionate plea for him to be shown mercy and indicated that he was sorry for what had happened, Jerrick himself failed to express remorse or say that he was sorry.
In a stirring plea in mitigation, defence attorney Nigel Hughes told the court that his client regretted what had happened and was deeply sorry.
Hughes, who begged the court to be merciful with his client, noted that the man had no antecedents, did not have a history of violence, and posed no threat to society.
Counsel went on to advance on his client’s behalf the belief that he had learnt his lesson, while begging the court to take into consideration the circumstances in which he found himself at the time of the killing.
Hughes also asked the court to consider that Jerrick, a miner, has one child, has so far been imprisoned for the past two and a half years and that it was he who had surrendered himself to the police.
For its part, the prosecution asked the court to visit the convict with the maximum penalty.
Prosecutor Narissa Leander pointed out that while Jerrick’s attorney said that he was sorry, he himself continued to maintain that he did not commit the offence.
“It was a senseless act that was uncalled for,” Leander said as she asked the court to not only consider Jerrick’s one child but also that the deceased had left his three children.
Justice Singh asked Jerrick if there was anything he wanted to tell him. The convict, in a barely audible tone, then replied, “I aint juk nobody the day at the park.”
“I am disappointed Mr Jerrick. Your counsel’s plea moved me but I need to see remorse before I can be merciful. A man has lost his life,” Justice Singh replied.
He then informed the convict that he would be sentenced to 30 years in prison, but he deducted two years for time already spent in prison on remand.
Jerrick had been slapped with the capital charge, which stated that on July 31, 2014, at the Plaisance bus park, located at the corner of Avenue of the Republic and Regent Street, in Georgetown, he murdered Fiffee.
It was the state’s case that Jerrick and Fiffee had an argument, during which the convict stabbed Fiffee to his chest.
The injured man was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where he subsequently died.
Meanwhile, it was the defence’s contention that Jerrick was defending himself from the deceased, who was broadsiding him with a cutlass.
The evidence before the court was that the convict had approached Fiffee and said something, after which he (Jerrick) began punching him. The court had heard that moments later, the deceased armed himself with a cutlass and began broadsiding Jerrick.
The court had also heard from one of the witnesses that during this time, Jerrick was seen with what appeared to have been a knife in his hand.
The state’s case was led by Leander in association with state attorneys Siand Dhurjon and Michael Shahoud. Jerrick was represented by Hughes, in association with attorneys Peter Hugh and Savannah Barnwell.
