President David Granger, pursuant to powers under article 188(2) of the Constitution has granted Presidential Pardons to five women prisoners whom he considered fit and proper to receive such pardons, according to a statement from the Minis-try of Public Security.
The pardoned prisoners from the New Amsterdam Prison are: Jenny Henry (22 years); Neeta Shamlall (56 years); Margo Gordon (35 years); Cleva France (32 years) and Nesha Rambaran (44 years).
The statement said that these prisoners have served a portion of their respective sentences for offences ranging from larceny and fraud to assault causing bodily harm.
The pardons shall be effective as from May 26, 2017, in observance of the 51st Independence Anniversary, the statement said.
It added “It is expected that this expression of compassion and humanity by His Excellency will result in families being re-united, and the pardoned offenders leading good and useful lives hereon”.
Since acceding to office in 2015, Granger had said that he would be pardoning youth and women who were imprisoned for non-serious offences. In his first year as President just over 50 prisoners were said to have been released. Granger was roundly criticized over this as the names of the persons released and the crimes they had committed were not provided. Some were said to have committed crimes thereafter. There has never been an accounting for the first batch released and how they might have fared.
Smaller numbers of prisoners were subsequently released as in the extant case.
