Pathologist details Mario Deane’s injuries after fatal beating

A pathologist today detailed the injuries sustained by Mario Deane before his death in police custody, testifying that the wounds were consistent with blunt-force trauma.

Dr Murari Sarangi, the now-retired forensic pathologist who performed Deane’s autopsy, appeared via Zoom before the Westmoreland Circuit Court on the ninth day of evidence against Corporal Elaine Stewart and Constables Juliana Clevon and Marlon Grant.

The three officers are facing charges related to Deane’s 2014 death.

Sarangi told the court he conducted the autopsy on September 2, 2014, weeks after Deane died at the Cornwall Regional Hospital on August 6.

Deane, who had been detained at the Barnett Street Police Station lock-up for possession of a ganja spliff, was admitted to the hospital in an unconscious state on August 3, after sustaining severe injuries while in custody.

Among the injuries Sarangi noted was a bruise on the right side of Deane’s head and face, which he said was caused by blunt-force trauma, possibly from being struck against a wall or hit with a heavy object.

The pathologist, who worked in Jamaica from 1999 to 2023, also disclosed that he was the sole forensic pathologist serving western Jamaica during that time and performed approximately 1,000 autopsies per year.

The trial was adjourned early to tomorrow when Sarangi will continue his evidence-in-chief.

Stewart, Clevon, and Grant are charged with manslaughter, misconduct in a public office, and perverting the course of justice.

Prosecutors allege that the officers were on duty at the time Deane was beaten and that Stewart ordered the cleaning of the cell before investigators from the Independent Commission of Investigations arrived.

- Christopher Thomas

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