The Guyana Court of Appeal yesterday commenced hearing arguments in the appeal brought by Rawle Samuels of the life sentence imposed upon him for the killing of four-year-old Jamal Nedd, whom he knifed to death at Buck Hill, Linden, in 2013.
Samuels, who is hoping to have his sentence reduced, is contending that it is “manifestly excessive.”
The state, on the other hand, is arguing that having regard to all the circumstances of the case, the sentence imposed by trial judge Justice Nareshwar Harnanan was fair.
On July 18th of last year, Samuels, who had been indicted for murder, pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter, accepting that on February 6th, 2013, he unlawfully killed the toddler.