THE high-interest trial of former People’s National Party (PNP) Member of Parliament Jolyan Silvera for the 2023 murder of his wife Melissa Silvera, which is now set to begin February 2 this year, will remain in-camera and away from the public’s glare for now, unless attorneys involved in the matter say otherwise.

This is so because the indictment preferred by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions against Silvera, charging him with using a firearm to commit a felony contrary to Section 14 (2) of the Firearms (Prohibition, Restriction and Regulation) Act, and with murder, was a Gun Court indictment. That means Gun Court Act provisions apply.

On Monday, trial judge Chief Justice Bryan Sykes, who is also head of the judiciary, in painstakingly outlining why media coverage would not be allowed said, “Speaking personally, I don’t have any problem with journalists being present. If the lawyers agree, then we can come to some accommodation, but for the time being it is what it is.”

Justice Sykes further said journalists could approach lawmakers about the legal provisions.

Section 13 (1) of the Gun Court Act states: In the interest of public safety or public order no person shall be present at any sitting of the court except — (a) members and officers of the court and any constable or other security personnel required by the court; (b) parties to the case before the court, their attorneys, and witnesses giving or having given their evidence, and other persons directly concerned with the case; (c) …. (d) such other persons as the court may specifically authorise to be present.

Section 13 (2) states that, in the interest of public safety, public order or public morality, the court may direct that (a) in relation to any witness called or appearing before the court, the name, the address of the witness, or such other particulars concerning the witness as in the opinion of the court should be kept confidential, shall not be published; (b) no particulars of the trial other than the name of the accused, the offence charged, and the verdict and sentence shall be published without the prior approval of the court.

These provisions have been the basis of in-camera hearings of any type and trials in all divisions of the Gun Court since 1974. It has resulted in judges presiding in the Gun Court excluding the public from being inside the court when offences under the Gun Court Act are being addressed.

Jamaica’s Gun Court has three main divisions under the Supreme Court: the High Court Division (for most firearm offences, heard by a judge without a jury), the Circuit Court Division (for serious offences like murder/treason using a firearm, involving a jury), and the Resident Magistrate’s Division (for preliminary inquiries for capital crimes). Cases are handled in-camera (privately).

On Monday a sleek Silvera, seemingly several pounds lighter and clad in a crisp, blue and white pinstriped dress shirt and navy blue tailored pants, freshly shaven, hair well-groomed, was whisked into the courtroom in cuffs for his hearing.

The land developer’s wife, Melissa, was found dead in their home in Stony Hill, St Andrew, on November 10, 2023. The former politician was arrested and charged in January 2024 and has been in custody since. Police commenced the murder investigation after three bullet fragments were found inside the body of the politician’s wife. Initially, it was reported that the 42-year-old mother of four boys — one of whom predeceased her — died in her sleep from natural causes. The couple were married in 2015.

An alumnus of the University of Virginia, where she studied chemical engineering, Melissa Silvera served as CEO of Moda Petroleum Company Limited.

Jolyan Silvera is being represented by attorney Peter Champagnie King’s Counsel and Patrice Riley, while the Crown is being represented by prosecutors Dwayne Green and Latoya Bernard.

Former People’s National Party Member of Parliament Jolyan Silvera smirks as he is about to enter a police truck outside the Supreme Court in downtown Kingston in January 2024. Silvera, who is charged with murder in relation to the death of his wife, was in court for the first hearing of the case. (Photo: Garfield Robinson)