'I never gave up on my son'

"They that trust in the Lord shall be like Mount Zion that shall never be moved," declared Joy Percell as she welcomed news that her son, David Foster, had been cleared of charges of carnal abuse, buggery and sexual assault.

"In all of this, I never gave up on my son. Though people say things and as shameful as it looked, I had never given up on him," Percell told The Sunday Gleaner.

With Foster being the 10th of her 14 children, Percell was confident that the son she raised to become a successful carpenter with a growing business would never abuse a 12-year-old child.

"Because, guess what happen to him, from him small him is a ladies man and everywhere the woman dem love him. So I don't know where in me would think that. I just kept saying Lord you know, you know and I expect you to carry me through," the deeply religious Percell said as a single teardrop meandered down her cheek.

She was the person who took food and other items to Foster during the more than two years he spent in custody, first at the Central Police lock-up and later at the Horizon Remand Centre.

fasting and prayer

Percell said throughout her ordeal she was supported by several "prayer warriors", including "Evangelist Walcott, Evangelist Lewis and all the others who bond with me in fasting and prayer to help me get through this".

Now that the ordeal is over, Percell has joined her son in expressing concern about the mental welfare of the little girl who had to endure sexual abuse and was forced to lie from such a young age.

"This little girl, I have always loved her and I never one day have any hatred in my heart for her even when she was accusing David. As a mother, I also feel for the man who is in jail right now because he must have a mental problem (if) he has to do something like that.

"And the mother of the child, I can't hate her because she had to defend her child."

But Percell is disappointed that with no other evidence except the word of a 12-year-old the police believed they had enough to arrest and charge her son.

"They have to investigate more. They can't just mess up somebody's life like this and then it just move on. That can't be right man,p something must have to fix the system because many other persons gone to jail like this," declared Percell.