Soldier must testify in open court, coroner rules

Tivoli Inquest

Saturday, August 21, 2010

CORONER Patrick Murphy yesterday threw out a motion by Jamaica Defence Force attorneys, who had requested that soldiers appearing before the inquest into the January 2008 police shooting of five men be allowed to testify in private, for national security reasons.

The motion was filed on Wednesday by attorney Chester Crooks, however, after two days of in-camera deliberations the coroner threw out the motion, and the first soldier appearing before the coroner gave testimony in open court yesterday.

The witness, who was the commanding officer in charge of the soldiers involved in a joint police/military team that went into Tivoli Gardens on the day in question, said that members of the army were instructed to search for wanted men from the Stone Crusher gang in two buildings on Seaga Boulevard. He said that during the search they heard gunshots in the vicinity. He said he was then informed that a group of gunmen had ran into a building on Keith Avenue and had barricaded themselves inside.

According to the witness, he instructed his men to secure the building and to ensure that none of the gunmen escaped. Additional soldiers, he said, had to be deployed to the location.

Under cross-examination from the attorney Howard Hamilton, who is appearing for the Office of the Public Defender, who enquired about the procedure that should be used when gunmen lock themselves inside a building, the witness said that force should be used only if the men have failed to respond to calls for them to get out.

Five men — 23-year-old Fitzroy Daley; Conrad Francis, 18; Oneil Palmer, 22; Ronaldo Mitchell, 20, all of Tivoli Gardens, and Kwesi Cunningham, 23, of Eltham Park in St Catherine — were killed in the house on Keith Avenue on January 13 in what was described by the police as "an ensuing gun battle".

The witness, who made no mention of what took place inside the building, testified that a soldier and a policeman were injured in the operation. In addition, he said five firearms were recovered from the building and four were found in other parts of the community along with a large quantity of ammunition.

So far nine civilians and seven policemen have testified in the inquest. Three of the policemen who were a part of the team that went into Tivoli Gardens have so far corroborated the police account of the incident, while two of the civilians who were residing at the house where the shooting occurred have testified.

The inquest, which is being held at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston, will resume Monday.

Did you watch American football's Super Bowl on Sunday?
	Yes, but just for the advertisements
	Yes, just for the game itself
	Yes, for both the game and advertisements
	No, I did not watch the Super Bowl.

View Results
Results published weekly in Sunday Finance

Username:
Password:

Stephen Marley wins Grammy

Soldier must testify in open court, coroner rules