Vybz Kartel, co-accused all freed by Court of Appeal

Dancehall entertainer Vybz Kartel and his three co-accused will not be retried for the 2011 killing of Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams.

President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Marva McDonald-Bishop, in providing reasons for the decision that was handed down on Wednesday, said 12 factors were considered.

Among them were the seriousness of the offences, the strength of the prosecution’s case, the availability of witnesses for a retrial, the ordeal to be faced by the men if a new trial is ordered, changes to the Jury Act, and the possibility of prejudice based on the information in the public domain regarding the first trial.

Despite explaining that the offences were very serious in nature, McDonald-Bishop said there were “powerful” factors that would work against the ordering of a retrial.

“These factors are the insufficient and inadequate account by the prosecution for the availability of its witnesses and trial exhibits,” McDonald-Bishop started out.

The complex nature of the trial, which lasted for 64 days and utilised significant resources to complete, was another factors that the appellate court considered in Kartel and his co-accused’s favour.

Kartel’s health record also a factor that weighed against a new trial.

McDonald-Bishop said the acquittals have been decided on, and the accused men are free. The decision was unanimous among the three judges.

The full written judgment of the court is still subject to editing, said McDonald-Bishop, but a summary is being provided.

She said the summary was done to provide the public with the reasons for coming to the decision on the matter of a retrial.

The written judgment is to be available at a later date.

Vybz Kartel, whose real name is Adidja Palmer, along with Andre St John, Kahira Jones and Shawn ‘Shawn Storm’ Campbell, were charged with the murder of Williams in 2011, and convicted in 2014.

However, they had their convictions quashed by the UK Privy Council in March 2024, with the matter being sent back to the Court of Appeal in Jamaica for it to decide whether the men should be retried.

The UK Privy Council quashed their convictions, citing irregularities in the handling of a juror issue during the trial.

The Privy Council also concluded that the trial judge’s decision to allow a tainted juror to remain on the jury was “fatal” to the safety of the conviction and infringed on the men’s right to a fair hearing.

At the end of hearing arguments for and against a retrial of the men, the Court of Appeal reserved judgment.

Attorneys for the men argued against a retrial in mid-June, with Vybz Kartel’s lawyer, Isat Buchanan, stating that the prosecution should end its case against the entertainer and his co-accused in light of admission that the men’s rights to a trial within a reasonable time has been breached.

Acting Director of Public Prosecutions, Claudette Thompson, indicated that the crown was prepared to start the trial in the new court term beginning in September, should a retrial be ordered. (Caribbean Loop News)