Jamaican attorney-at-law David Rowe died in Miami, Florida, on Friday at age 58, his uncle Henry Stewart told the Jamaica Observer.

Stewart did not give the cause of death, but said Rowe “was not doing so well. He was in and out of the hospital”.

A graduate of the Norman Manley Law School, Rowe practised law in Florida for over 30 years and was an adjunct professor at the University of Miami, where he established the Caribbean Law programme.

He gained a national profile in the United States and Jamaica in May/June 2010, appearing as a commentator on numerous current affairs programmes, discussing the arrest and extradition to the US of West Kingston ‘Don’ Christopher “Dudus” Coke.

In June that year, Rowe likened Coke to a legendary folk hero during an interview with CNN.

“He lives in a poor area and because of his sale of cocaine, he basically plays the Robin Hood role,” Rowe said then.

The outspoken Rowe also predicted that the Jamaican Government’s refusal to extradite Coke to the US to face arms and drug trafficking charges, would have devastating repercussions for the Administration of Prime Minister Bruce Golding.

David Rowe was the son of Hon Ira Rowe, a distinguished jurist who served as president of the Court of Appeal in Jamaica and Belize.

— Howard Campbell