King’s Counsel Tom Tavares-Finson, former lead attorney for Vybz Kartel in the entertainer’s murder case, has welcomed the Court of Appeal ruling that freed the dancehall star and his co-accused of the charge.

The Court of Appeal ruled Wednesday against a retrial of Kartel and his co-accused for the murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams, allowing the deejay and two of his co-defendants to walk free after 13 years in prison.

In a statement, Tavares-Finson said “speaking solely” in their capacity as former defense attorneys when the Kartel matter went to trial, the defense team, which also included his son Christian Tavares-Finson, Pierre Rogers, Tamika Harris, Michael Lorne and Everton Dewar, welcomes the judgement handed down by recently-appointed Court of Appeal President, Marva McDonald Bishop and her team.

WATCH: Vybz Kartel walks free from prison after 13 years

“Certainly as lead defense attorney at trial, I believe the judgement is in the interest of justice and lends credibility to the various objections which Kartel’s defense team had raised at trial,” Tavares-Finson said.

“Let us not forget that the Privy Council had initially quashed Kartel’s conviction. I think the fair treatment of this kind of high profile matter by the Privy Council is another reason why many Jamaicans, including myself, support its retention as our country’s final appellate court,” he added.

Kartel, real name Adidja Palmer; Shawn ‘Shawn Storm’ Campbell; Kahira Jones; and Andre St John were convicted of the September 2011 murder of Williams.

Lawyers representing the quartet made an appeal to the local Court of Appeal in 2020, but their convictions were upheld.

The accused’s appeal was then taken to the United Kingdom-based Privy Council, and on March 14, 2024, their murder convictions were overturned on the grounds of juror misconduct.

The Privy Council also remitted the case back to the Jamaica Court of Appeal to decide whether there should be a retrial.

Kartel, Campbell and St John were released from the Tower Street Adult Correctional Centre in Kingston on Wednesday evening.

In 2019, Jones was sentenced to 18 years in prison for wounding with intent and eight years each for illegal possession of firearm and illegal possession of ammunition in a separate case.