Teen freed of gun charges after police witnesses discredited

Eighteen-year-old footballer Raheem Williams wept openly in the Gun Court on Thursday when Justice Ann-Marie Lawrence-Grainger returned a not-guilty verdict after police witnesses were discredited during cross-examination at his trial.

Williams, who was represented by attorney-at-law Delpharine Golding Jenkins, was freed of charges of possession of a prohibited weapon and unauthorised use of ammunition.

The Crown led evidence that Williams was held by the police in March last year while running along West Street in downtown Kingston.

The police had reported that they saw men committing a robbery in the early morning and upon their approach the men ran in different directions.

The teen, who the police claimed was one of the men who allegedly committed the robbery, was accosted while running.

A policeman testified that Williams was held while he was trying to hide under a car.

The defence counsel was instrumental in getting the DNA report admitted during cross-examination.

The report showed that while other DNA results were present on the gun, Williams' DNA was excluded.

An intense cross-examination followed after the DNA report was admitted.

When questioned by defence counsel as to how the gun got into the waistband of the accused notwithstanding that his DNA was excluded from the firearm, the policeman replied that Williams had put the gun in his waistband. 

It was suggested to the witness that if the accused had placed the firearm in his waistband then his DNA would have been found on the gun.

Another policeman had testified that the gun was found in the waistband of the accused.

The teen, in his defence, said the police did not take any gun from him and he was innocent of the charges.

In her submissions, Golding Jenkins called for the judge to acquit Williams because the police officers had said in their written statements that the gun was taken from her client while he was running but in court gave a different version.

She also argued that the evidence given by the police officers as to what happened on the day of the incident was not credible.

She submitted, in closing, that to ignore the DNA evidence meant the Crown would have had to adduce evidence to show why the DNA evidence should be ignored but the Crown did not.

Golding Jenkins said the teen, who plays for his school's DaCosta Cup football team, is happy to be cleared of the charges because he is aware that if convicted he would be facing 15 years in prison.

She says he is now in school pursuing Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) studies.

- Barbara Gayle

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