THE Crown will this Wednesday make its opening address outlining its case and the evidence to be unveiled in the trial of alleged Klansman faction leader Tesha Miller and his 24 co-accused, as it raises the curtains on the proceedings which will be presided over by Supreme Court judge Justice Dale Palmer, sitting without a jury.

This follows the granting of a further one-day recess in the matter which had been set to commence on Monday, February 2 in the Home Circuit Division of the Supreme Court in downtown Kingston, following a 21-day adjournment.

The first adjournment had come about because of an application by the Crown — on January 7, the original trial date — seeking a June start date because of outstanding material critical to the case. That application had been supported by members of the defence bar engaged in the case. At the time, Justice Palmer, who had indicated that he was not minded to grant an adjournment to June, ruled on the February 2 start date.

However on Monday, after a delayed start, defence attorney John-Mark Reid, appearing for the accused Kemar Miller, made an application seeking to have the matter adjourned further. According to Reid, if the trial was to continue without a further adjournment there was the risk of his client being deprived of his constitutional rights to a fair trial.

The attorney took issue with what he described as “the ever-expanding electronic disclosure database” being utilised by the prosecution in disclosing material for the trial to the defence.

Calling on Justice Palmer to “make an order” for the Crown to comply with the practice directions (mandatory guidelines issued by courts to supplement procedural rules), Reid said an adjournment would give attorneys adequate time to properly review the evidence and, “take full and wholesome instructions from their clients”, as well as prepare their witnesses.

Reid contended that the Crown had the upper hand, given that his client was charged in 2023, giving them some two to three years to process and gather evidence. He said while it was accepted that the trial process is fluid and the court cannot grant adjournments just so attorneys can read “all the material”, the defence could not be expected to, “assess seismic evidence in hours”.

“What I definitely would want of the court is to make an order for my friends to conform to the practice direction, because I believe that would [place me] in a better position to adequately prepare to present a defence before the court for the charges brought against my client. This not only would assist myself, but also the court and further assist any judicial economy, because that would allow for my friends as well to see exactly where they are,” Reid contended.

Reid’s application was, however, opposed by colleague attorney Sasha-Kay Shaw, attorney for the accused Geovaughni McDonald, who stated that her client, who has been in custody, is “anxious for this matter to start”.

“We acknowledge the challenges that have arisen, and we sympathise, but my client is eager… I am prepared to start,” Shaw declared.

The lead prosecutor, who will be marshalling the Crown’s evidence in the case, in a methodical and reasoned response to Reid’s application said, “The Crown has disclosed all that is in its possession,” up to Monday morning. He further noted that while investigations in the matter began in March 2023, the prosecuting team now in the matter were only assigned in November 2025. He said every effort had been made from their end to simplify the electronic disclosure process while adhering to the legal rules that applied.

“The Crown is in a position to proceed,” he maintained, noting that if the court was minded to, “deploy an adjournment, it should be a short one”.

Justice Palmer, in ruling, said, “In a matter of this nature and of this complexity, logistics are always going to be challenging. I don’t see how further delay in starting the matter will improve any of these issues.

“You have already heard through the learned prosecutor on the passing of a witness… these are issues that generally arise the longer that matters take to get started. I do not believe that in the circumstances …they [accused] are being treated unfairly.”

In noting that significant resources had been deployed for the case and time set for it to be heard, Justice Palmer said, “Time has been allotted, a judge has been assigned, resources have been deployed significantly, I would say, to have this matter heard. To adjourn it now and in a protracted way… may well see us next year in the same place. I do wonder, quite rhetorically, if that is not prejudicial. As it relates to late disclosure, there are ways in which the courts can deal with issues of disclosure,” Justice Palmer stated while warning that, “there must be a time… that disclosure comes to an end… and where a decision may have to be made whether or not, depending on the nature of disclosure, permission ought to be allowed to rely on it”.

Said Justice Palmer: “…certainly, no more than a short adjournment will be afforded, and so this matter will commence on Wednesday, February, 4, 2026 — that is the day after tomorrow”.

At that time he is also expected to rule on an application by the Crown seeking restrictions on reports by the media pertaining to witnesses and other sensitive details.

Meanwhile, the bail for accused medical doctor Paul Robinson was extended while the remaining defendants were remanded.

Miller — who is currently serving 38 years at hard labour for engineering the 2008 murder of former Jamaica Urban Transit Company Chairman Douglas Chambers — is answering to charges under the Criminal Justice (Suppression of Criminal Organisations) (Amendment) Act, commonly called the anti-gang law, for leadership of the Klansman gang.

He and the 24 other accused now facing trial are alleged to have participated in several criminal activities between August 5, 2017 and August 22, 2022 in St Catherine. The charges include murder, conspiracy to murder, attempted murder, robbery with aggravation, illegal possession of firearm, and illegal possession of ammunition.