The Tribune

By SANCHESKA BROWN

Tribune Staff Reporter

sbrown@tribunemedia.net

THE INQUEST into the death of Jamie Smith was once again delayed yesterday after Acting Corner Jeanine Weech-Gomez told the court she was not in a position to sum up the evidence.

After a two-week adjournment, Mrs Weech Gomez was expected to give a summary of the evidence and give the jurors their instructions, however she apologised to the court and said she would not be ready to proceed until September 20.

Smith, 35, died at the Central Detective Unit within two hours of his arrest on suspicion of armed robbery on February 8, 2013.

Four officers from the station, Sergeant Ezra Maycock, Corporal Brian Roach, Corporal Sterling Knowles and Sergeant Keno Smith, have been placed on administrative leave.

A pathologist’s report concluded that Smith died of asphyxia, an excess of carbon dioxide caused by abnormal breathing.

Acting Coroner Jeanine Weech-Gomez oversees the inquiry. Attorney Christina Galanos represents Smith’s immediate family and lawyers Wayne Munroe and Ian Cargill represent the officers.

Corporal Roach admitted in earlier testimony that he placed Smith in a sleeper hold to try and calm him down and prevent him from escaping.

He testified that the hold is a standard police position used to subdue unruly suspects.

During his closing arguments, Mr Munroe told the five member jury that their decision in this case will send a clear message to the police force.

He said: “If you tell police they cannot use this hold, then how should they restrain suspects? Would you prefer they use my method and just shoot the person? Are you, the jury, saying that the Bahamian police ought not to have available to them a technique used all over the world?

“If he had gotten a firearm from one of the officers it would be a different story. We would be reading the papers and saying ‘These officers must be inept, how did they let this man get a gun?’”

Mr Munroe also said Jamie Smith was a felon and the law permits certain treatment when it comes to felons.

He said: “People can die before a trial for their felonies, the law permits that.”

Mr Munroe said Smith got violent when he realised that officers would figure out he was not Matthew Pratt, as he originally told them, but actually Jamie Smith.

Facing the possibility that he could spend the rest of his life in prison for armed robbery, Smith decided to escape and the officers could not let him leave as it is an offence to let a felon escape from police custody, the lawyer said.

However, Ms Galanis said despite the reputation Smith may or may not have had, it does not give the police the right to play judge, jury and executioner.

She said regardless of what may have been said in court about Smith, he died an innocent man.

Ms Galanis said Smith had a fundamental right to have a trial and even if he was found guilty, his sentence would not have been death.

She told the jury that the officers tried to portray Smith as the aggressor to justify their actions. She said they are hiding behind Section 103 of the Penal code, which gives officers the right to use whatever force necessary to recapture, arrest or kill a felon trying to escape custody.

However, she said killing him should be the last resort if he could not otherwise be detained and the evidence does not show that they tried any other means of restraining him.