Dancehall entertainer Vybz Kartel, born Adidja Palmer, and his three co-accused were set free on Wednesday after Jamaica’s Court of Appeal decided against retrying them for the 2011 murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams. The three-judge panel, comprising Justices Marva McDonald-Bishop, Paulette Williams, and David Fraser, delivered the unanimous decision.
Before the ruling, an abbreviated summary was provided to assist the public in understanding the case. Vybz Kartel, along with Shawn ‘Shawn Storm’ Campbell, Kahira Jones, and Andre St John, were initially convicted in March 2014 for Williams’ murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. Their convictions were upheld by Jamaica’s Court of Appeal in 2020.
The case was then taken to the UK-based Privy Council, which overturned the murder convictions on March 14, 2024, due to juror misconduct. The Privy Council remitted the case back to the Jamaica Court of Appeal to determine if a retrial was necessary.
After extensive legal arguments, the Court of Appeal ruled that a retrial was not in the interest of justice. Justice McDonald-Bishop stated, “Having regard to all considerations the court has taken into account, we conclude that the interest of justice do not require a new trial to be ordered for the appellants. We therefore make the following order: judgments and verdicts of acquittal are entered in relation to the appellants.”
Key factors in the decision included the seriousness of the crime, the strength of the prosecution’s case, the availability of witnesses, the feasibility of a retrial within a reasonable time, and the cost of the retrial. The judges also considered the toll a retrial would take on the appellants, who had already spent 13 years in custody.
Defense attorney Isat Buchanan argued for acquittal to prevent further constitutional breaches against the accused, while Acting Director of Public Prosecutions Claudette Thompson maintained that a retrial was justified given the seriousness of the offense and public interest.
The ruling comes just before Jamaican Emancipation Day and a week-long celebration culminating in Jamaican Independence Day, marking a poignant moment for Kartel and his co-accused. As Vybz Kartel and his co-defendants celebrate their release, the dancehall community eagerly anticipates his return to music and future collaborations.
The decision closes a decade-long legal saga for Vybz Kartel, who maintains his innocence in the murder of Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Emmanuel Mensah
