Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter
DESPITE STRONG objections from defence lawyers representing Senior Superintendent Reneto Adams and the other five policemen charged with murder, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Kent Pantry, Q.C., was successful yesterday in getting the trial date changed from September 19 to October 31.
The policemen are charged with the murder of four civilians in Kraal, Clarendon, on May 7, 2003. The other lawmen charged are Corporal Patrick Coke, Constables Shane Lyons, Roderick Colleyard, Lynford Gordon and Devon Bernard.
ASSIGNMENT PROBLEMS
When the case came up for mention yesterday in the Home Circuit Court, Mr. Pantry said he was seeking a trial date of November 14 because of problems in areas of assignment and variations which have affected staffing in his department.
He said two senior prosecutors were appointed to another department and one had resigned.
The Gleaner understands that Jamaican attorney-at-law Terrence Williams, who is the DPP in the British Virgin Islands, will be prosecuting the case.
Defence lawyers K. Churchill Neita, Q.C., Earl Witter, Valerie Neita-Robertson and Debra Martin opposed the application saying that if a November date was set then the case would go over into January 2006.
They said the case was set for all of next term because there were more than 100 witnesses and they had cleared their diaries to deal with the case.
