Key witness wavers under cross-examination

A neighbour of Constable Noel Maitland has denied fabricating claims that the accused officer wanted access to security footage because of concerns it might show him smoking ganja and jeopardise a pending promotion.

The witness previously testified that Maitland called him twice on July 13, 2022, asking whether footage was stored, expressing concern that it might capture him walking with a spliff. But, under cross-examination by defence attorney Christopher Townsend, the witness expressed uncertainty about whether Maitland had actually mentioned the spliff himself.

“I am not sure if it is he or me who said this,” he said.

“Now you are saying it could have been you,” Townsend added.

“Yes, as a generic example,” the witness remarked.

But while agreeing that both answers could not be true, he said neither was a lie.

The witness further disagreed with the suggestion that he was having difficulty remembering because it was never said.

“You made that up,” Townsend said.

“I do not agree,” he replied.

Maitland is on trial in the Home Circuit Court for the murder of his girlfriend, Donna-Lee Donaldson, and preventing her lawful burial. Donaldson, a 24-year-old social media personality, was last seen on July 11, 2022 when Maitland picked her up. Her mother said she last heard from her daughter the following morning.

The witness said Maitland visited him on July 14 to review camera footage, claiming someone had gone missing. He had earlier testified that Maitland told him a girl at his apartment had disappeared. When asked about the conflicting reasons – concerns over a spliff versus a missing person – he acknowledged the inconsistency but said he had not thought about it at the time.

Townsend also accused the witness of lying about Maitland asking to erase footage. The witness firmly denied this and claimed he never deleted footage from three of his five cameras. He maintained that Maitland mentioned the promotion even when it was suggested that police had no record of one.

The witness admitted he told the Independent Commission of Investigations that Maitland’s call on July 13 came after a missed call, but he still insisted Maitland had called him at least twice that day.

Though the witness had previously demonstrated strong recall, he appeared less certain under cross-examination. He could not remember specifics, such as the exact footage Maitland requested or whether Maitland asked the camera technician for a specific time frame. He also said he didn’t recall Maitland telling the technician he wanted to see where his “sistren” went but conceded it was possible.

INSISTING ON 2 CALLS

The witness admitted he told the Independent Commission of Investigations that Maitland’s call on July 13 came after a missed call, but he still insisted Maitland had called him at least twice that day.

Though the witness had previously demonstrated strong recall, he appeared less certain under cross-examination. He could not remember specifics which he had spoken to in his earlier evidence.

During his earlier testimony, he told the court that Maitland had asked for a specific time frame between July 11 and July 12 and that one of the footages that he had looked at was on the afternoon of July 12. However, when asked by Townsend if he recalled Maitland asking the camera technician for the time period, he said he could not remember the specifics.

He also said he could not recall what was the time period for the footage that they viewed on July 12.

He also said he didn’t recall Maitland telling the technician he wanted to see where his “sistren” went, but conceded it was possible.

Regarding Maitland’s child’s mother, the witness denied ever seeing her drive Maitland’s car or speaking to her, including in August 2022.

During re-examination, the witness revealed he had never checked whether the camera system was recording properly, and admitted he did not know how to verify it.

The witness, under cross-examination, had said that he did not check the camera frequently.

The trial is set to continue today with a new witness.

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com