Finding the defence of Devon Thomas and Randy Isaac who were convicted for the 2013 Mashramani Day murder of Kumar Mohabir not to have been adequately and fairly put to the jury, the Guyana Court of Appeal has ordered that they be retried.
Delivering the ruling of the court yesterday afternoon, acting Chancellor Yonette Cummings-Edwards said that contrary to what the authorities require, the trial judge failed to adequately put the appellants’ defence to the jury.
In allowing the appeal, she said that it was not enough for the judge simply to have told the jurors that it was for them to decide what the defence was, but rather that there is a duty on the part of the trial judge to specifically tell the jury what the case of the defence is.
The appellate court said it found on the record that the trial judge erred in this regard and to ensure fairness, the appellants will be granted a new trial.
Referencing an excerpt from one of several case law precedents, the Chancellor stressed that no case can be said to have been fully or adequately put to the jury if concomitantly the defence is not adequately put to the jury.
In the circumstances, the appellants were informed that their conviction would be set aside and a new trial ordered.
Presiding over the case was the Chancellor along with Justices of Appeal Dawn Gregory and Rishi Persaud.
The appellants were represented by attorney Nigel Hughes, while the state was represented by Prosecutor Dionne McCammon.
In 2015, Thomas and Isaac were convicted and sentenced by Justice Navindra Singh to 75 years each for murdering businessman Kumar on February 23rd, 2013. He had further ordered that they not be eligible for parole until after serving 40 years in jail.
The Judge had commenced the sentence at a base of 60 years, thereafter adding 10 years for the injuries inflicted on the deceased and another five years for the cruelty of the act.
The charge against the duo was that they murdered Mohabir, 25, of Enterprise, East Coast Demerara, who died of multiple stab wounds, in the wee hours of the morning of February 24th, 2013.
The state’s case was that on Mashramani Day—February 23rd, Kumar, who was with his family, was attacked by Thomas, Isaac and other persons.
