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Author Topic: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"  (Read 3839 times)

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Offline Bakes

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Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« on: May 04, 2013, 07:25:27 PM »
8 months for killing ‘bully’
Nikita Braxton-Benjamin (Trinidad Express)


May 3, 2013

A MAN sentenced to eight years in prison for the stabbing death of his neighbour will spend eight months in prison because he has been in jail the past seven years and four months awaiting trial.

Curtis Garraway, 33, of Cap-de-Ville, pleaded guilty two weeks ago to the charge of manslaughter, following the death of Martin “Bobhead” Francis.

Francis, of Roberts Lane, was killed on Christmas Eve in 2005.

The dead man was des­cribed by neighbours as a bully and a bad-john who went looking for fights.

In passing sentence, Justice Carla Browne-Antoine told Garraway to get anger management skills as it will assist him to walk away, should he be provoked when he is released from prison.

“The situation in this coun­try is there are a number of senseless killings. There is a sense in this country that people can’t control their anger and their only course of redress is to hurt another person,” the judge said.

She said while the court is expected to exercise mer­cy, citizens must do the same.

Browne-Antoine said the court accepted that Garraway acted out of provocation, but she noted Fran­cis was unarmed when he was stabbed.

“The court considers this a serious offence because a life was lost.”

The judge considered that Garraway had shown re­morse by wanting to plead guil­ty from the onset, and at the first opportunity after the stabbing, he made a report to the police.

He told the officers that Francis had threatened and hit him, and he stabbed him twice in his belly.

He was later charged by Corporal Garcia.

Defence attorney Mervyn Mitchell also said his client had apologised to the relatives of the deceased.

Residents of the area des­cribed Garraway as a peace-loving and respectful person, and several letters attesting to Garraway’s good character were  submitted to the court. A petition asking for him to return to the community had also been handed over.

The judge said the maximum sentence for the offence was life in prison. The State asked for a term of five to ten years while Mitchell said his client should be released.

Browne-Antoine started with a ten-year term and deducted two years as Garraway entered a guilty plea to the manslaughter charge.

She said the 2,672 days Garraway had already spent behind bars were deducted. This amounted to seven years, three months and 26 days.

He will therefore spend eight more months behind bars.

It was the State’s case, as led by attorney Shabana Shah, that around 10 a.m. on December 24, 2005, Francis was quarrelling with Garraway near their homes.

Witnesses later told police there was a dispute between the two men over a water line and a land issue.

Garraway was walking in front of the deceased’s home when Francis called out to him, and he (Gar­raway) replied: “If you want to slap me down, come, as there is an audience.”

Shah said their neighbour Makeisha Paul heard Francis say to Garraway that he would kill him, and he “shoot behind police already and would shoot him too”.

Shah said, 15 minutes later, Francis confronted Garraway in the roadway with a blade resembling a small cutlass, and Garraway told him to put it down.

Francis went home but returned a short while later, and both he and Garraway were seen confronting each other on the roadway.

The men later scrambled and Garraway stabbed Francis in the chest and lower sto­mach. Francis ran into a neigh­bour’s gallery where he collapsed. He died at the San Fernando General Hospital.

Offline Bakes

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #1 on: May 04, 2013, 07:26:15 PM »
This is so ridiculous that it almost beggars belief.  Imagine spending 7 and a half years in jail waiting to be brought to trial?  Madness!

Offline Toppa

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #2 on: May 05, 2013, 11:20:38 AM »
This is so ridiculous that it almost beggars belief.  Imagine spending 7 and a half years in jail waiting to be brought to trial?  Madness!

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Offline triniairman

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #3 on: May 05, 2013, 11:29:06 AM »
This is so ridiculous that it almost beggars belief.  Imagine spending 7 and a half years in jail waiting to be brought to trial?  Madness!
Imagine if he was innocent, how would they compensate this man for the last 7 years that they imprisoned him? The justice system needs a total revamp in T&T.

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #4 on: May 05, 2013, 12:25:09 PM »
My lord
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Offline Bakes

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #5 on: May 05, 2013, 01:03:27 PM »
Imagine if he was innocent, how would they compensate this man for the last 7 years that they imprisoned him? The justice system needs a total revamp in T&T.

That is precisely why this is so absurd.  What's particularly sad is that it sounds like he had a valid self-defense claim... but we'll never know, because in addition to being wracked by guilt, it probably made more sense to just plead guilty at this point and call it a day.

Offline Bakes

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #6 on: May 05, 2013, 01:07:47 PM »
Incidentally... this is exactly the type of case that the infamous Section 34 was intended to address, until the legislative apparatus was hijacked by the PP gov't.

Offline elan

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #7 on: May 05, 2013, 08:39:26 PM »
Trini Gitmo  ???
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Offline fishs

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #8 on: May 06, 2013, 02:47:53 AM »
Incidentally... this is exactly the type of case that the infamous Section 34 was intended to address, until the legislative apparatus was hijacked by the PP gov't.

Was it for murder as well?
I seem to recall it was for a range of offences but not capital.

 I was once a witness in a murder case and from deed to sentencing it took 3yrs
 One year in magistrate court then a gap of 2 yrs then 1 week in high court.
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Offline asylumseeker

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #9 on: May 06, 2013, 04:42:42 AM »
Why did she use 10 years as her benchmark?

Offline Toppa

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #10 on: May 06, 2013, 10:30:49 AM »
Why did she use 10 years as her benchmark?

I think it said that was how much the prosecution was seeking.

The State asked for a term of five to ten years while Mitchell said his client should be released.
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Offline asylumseeker

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #11 on: May 06, 2013, 11:23:33 AM »
Why did she use 10 years as her benchmark?

I think it said that was how much the prosecution was seeking.

The State asked for a term of five to ten years while Mitchell said his client should be released.

Yes, correct. Read that. However, she had the discretion to do otherwise. What's the utility of 8 additional months?

Also, presumably it would have been instructive if he had been receiving anger management during these preceding 7.3 years. SMH.

Offline Toppa

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #12 on: May 06, 2013, 11:51:26 AM »
Why did she use 10 years as her benchmark?

I think it said that was how much the prosecution was seeking.

The State asked for a term of five to ten years while Mitchell said his client should be released.

Yes, correct. Read that. However, she had the discretion to do otherwise. What's the utility of 8 additional months?



Well...she didn't want to...  :-\

Are you saying he should have got more or less? He was already in gaol  :) for over seven years, the State was asking for 10 - I mean, he did take a life - so she just added 8 months to the time already spent and called that George.
« Last Edit: May 06, 2013, 12:39:28 PM by Toppa »
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Offline Bakes

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #13 on: May 06, 2013, 11:56:05 AM »
It's really not that hard to understand... the judge gave him the maximum that the prosecution asked for, then gave him 2 years credit for pleading guilty.  When you subtract the amount of time spent in jail that left a sentence of 8 months.  She could have released him immediately, but for some reason chose not to.  She certainly wasn't going to give him more than the maximum requested by the State.  That only happens in rare circumstances, and it certainly doesn't seem warranted from the facts.

Offline ribbit

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #14 on: May 06, 2013, 12:12:10 PM »
dis man kill another fella and serving de sentence. where exactly is de miscarriage of justice? if this is about court efficiency, pay dem by de case instead of by de hour.

Offline Toppa

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #15 on: May 06, 2013, 12:38:42 PM »
dis man kill another fella and serving de sentence. where exactly is de miscarriage of justice? if this is about court efficiency, pay dem by de case instead of by de hour.

He wasn't serving the sentence - they sentenced him after he already spent 7 plus years in jail awaiting trial.
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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #16 on: May 06, 2013, 12:51:33 PM »
 ... It's not about miscarriage of justice per se. At the end of the day, justice has been served.

My perspective is ... ah find she was overly deferential to the State under the circumstances. She could have gone under 10 and set the man free immediately. With his counsel on this.

Offline Toppa

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #17 on: May 06, 2013, 01:08:28 PM »
... It's not about miscarriage of justice per se. At the end of the day, justice has been served.

My perspective is ... ah find she was overly deferential to the State under the circumstances. She could have gone under 10 and set the man free immediately. With his counsel on this.

She did as Bakes pointed out and I overlooked - she gave him less than the maximum of 10 - she gave him 8.
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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #18 on: May 06, 2013, 04:08:08 PM »
... Toppa, she did give him the maximum of 10. However, she "credited" him 2 years because of his plea. This means his sentence effectively was 8 years. My contention is that she should have given him a sentence that released him immediately. If you do the arithmetic, that would have been 9.3 years. Not more.

Offline ribbit

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #19 on: May 06, 2013, 07:29:01 PM »
dis man kill another fella and serving de sentence. where exactly is de miscarriage of justice? if this is about court efficiency, pay dem by de case instead of by de hour.

He wasn't serving the sentence - they sentenced him after he already spent 7 plus years in jail awaiting trial.

ah find dere are bigger problems. like de number of criminals that de police eh even catch and consequently aren't in the system at all. dis is making mountain out of antshill. bakes does get bazodee when he see a woman judge.

Offline Bakes

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #20 on: May 06, 2013, 08:43:22 PM »
ah find dere are bigger problems. like de number of criminals that de police eh even catch and consequently aren't in the system at all. dis is making mountain out of antshill. bakes does get bazodee when he see a woman judge.

Ah know is International Clitoris Week, but settle yuhself, is only Monday.  There's a box of crayons and some plasticine over in de corner... go occupy yuhself and leave de heavy lifting tuh de adults.

Offline elan

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Re: Man sentenced to 8 months for Killing "bully"
« Reply #21 on: May 06, 2013, 08:52:46 PM »
If he had gotten sentenced in a timely manner and was given the maximum of 10 years they were asking for, then he had the potential to be out in about 6 1/2 years.
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