‘Where’s my girl?’

“I still want to know where my daughter is.”

That was the haunting refrain from a tearful Sophia Lugg as she struggled to contain her emotions outside the Home Circuit Court on Thursday, moments after a jury found Constable Noel Maitland guilty of murdering her daughter, Donna-Lee Donaldson, whose body has never been found.

Although she wept tears of relief after the verdict, Lugg made it clear that the conviction, while significant, has not given her the closure she desperately seeks.

“Today, the verdict has passed, and victory belonged to us. I may never know what happened to my daughter. I may never get a bone, but justice will serve,” Lugg said. “And I will fight to the end.”

Still, she underscored the void that remains.

“That can’t give me back my child. I still want to know where my daughter is. I want to have that closure. It doesn’t solve my problems, but I can go on because justice is served,” she added.

Donaldson, 24, an entrepreneur and social media personality, was reported missing in July 2022.

Maitland, who has been on trial since last May before Justice Leighton Pusey, was found guilty of murder and preventing the lawful burial of a corpse.

Donaldson was last seen alive at Maitland’s Chelsea Manor apartment in St Andrew on July 12, 2022.

He was remanded for sentencing on March 13.

NEVER DOUBTED

Lugg, who broke down in tears following the verdict, said she never doubted the outcome.

“I firmly believe in God, and I know God was going to give me justice,” she said. “I went through this without doubt. I knew today would have been a guilty verdict. I’m a fighter. I’m a warrior. And I’m a winner because God is on my side.”

Commenting on Maitland’s emotional collapse in court, she said, “Tears are a language, even for murderers. He knows why he cries. He has been crying from day one. I don’t understand why Maitland did this, but God knows.

“ ... One day, even if it takes 100 years behind bars, Noel Maitland will tell me what happened to my child.”

Director of Public Prosecutions Claudette Thompson, in her first major case since her appointment last October, said the verdict evoked sadness rather than celebration.

“ ... I am feeling sad. It’s almost as if it’s a confirmation that Donna-Lee is really gone. So it’s not a moment for us to rejoice,” Thompson said. “It’s an acceptance that the jurors, I think, returned the correct verdict, so we are comforted by that, but there is no rejoicing.”

DEFENCE SURPRISED

Maitland’s attorney, Christopher Townsend, said the defence was surprised and signalled an appeal.

“Of course, there is always a Court of Appeal and so on to the next level,” Townsend said, adding that concerns remained about how certain issues were addressed during the trial, including how short the summation was.

Asked about his client’s reaction to the verdict, Townsend said: “He is very teary-eyed. He knows he is innocent and will have to take another opportunity to take justice in the Court of Appeal.”

Earlier inside the courtroom, Maitland, dressed in a blue suit, appeared visibly anxious and worried as the verdict approached, a stark contrast to his usually composed demeanour throughout the trial.

He sat cross-legged in the dock, one elbow resting on the bench, his gaze fixed straight ahead as court staff and police officers poured into the room for the closely watched decision.

When the guilty verdict was read, Maitland appeared stunned. He shook his head then bowed and eventually broke down. He wept openly as he was led from the courtroom in handcuffs and down the stairwell.

His father, seated in the gallery, let out a long sigh upon hearing the jury’s decision and exclaimed, “Oh God!”

The jury had deliberated for three hours and 36 minutes after retiring at 11:28 a.m.

Lugg later thanked Jamaicans at home and abroad for their support, calling the verdict a victory for justice even as the pain endured.

In an unsworn statement from the dock during the trial, Maitland maintained his innocence, insisting that he loved Donna-Lee and would never harm her while claiming that a “tiny spot” of blood found in his apartment may have resulted from a miscarriage during intimacy.

However, a government forensic analyst testified that blood traces recovered from items in Maitland’s New Kingston apartment matched Donaldson’s DNA.

The prosecution called 36 witnesses, including Lugg, during the case. She testified that her daughter was last seen alive when Maitland picked her up from her home on July 11, 2022, and that she last spoke with her the following morning.

Also representing Maitland was Bajan King’s Counsel Larry Smith alongside local attorneys Chadwick Berry, Sanjay Smith, and Kaysian Kennedy Sherman.

Acting Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Lori-Ann Tugwell and Crown Counsel Anita Hall also appeared along with the DPP for the prosecution.

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com