The Tribune

By LAMECH JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Reporter

ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

ANOTHER criminal appeal has been delayed due to a lawyer’s current punishment for refusing to pay a $2,000 contempt of court fine.

Tito Davis and Noel Cash were convicted in Magistrates Court for possessing a prohibited firearm, an unlicensed firearm and assorted ammunition and are contesting the ruling and 24-month sentence imposed on them in February 2013.

However, notably absent from Thursday’s proceedings before the Court of Appeal was Davis’ lawyer, Geoffrey Farquharson.

Mr Farquharson was imprisoned more than a week ago for refusing to pay a fine ordered by Justice Bernard Turner, who had found him guilty of contempt of court.

Mr Farquharson was found in contempt on May 22 for his court behaviour during last year’s Kofhe Goodman murder trial and the fine was imposed on June 5.

Before he was arrested on June 26 at the end of his 21-day deadline to pay, his request to the court to delay the commencement of his sentence was denied notwithstanding that he was representing a client in a Supreme Court trial. The contempt ruling is being contested.

On Thursday, Krysta Mason-Smith, lawyer for Cash, made an application to Justices Anita Allen, Stanley John and Neville Adderley for the appeals to be heard separately given the number of delays in the proceedings.

She explained that the case had been over her client’s head since November 2008 when he was charged and he was anxious for the matter to be concluded.

While the appellate court noted that Mr Farquharson had not filed his submissions, they were persuaded to grant the application given the circumstances surrounding the lawyer’s absence.

The court added, however, that the matter would definitely proceed on July 22, the next scheduled substantive hearing.

Mr Farquharson was also supposed to appear last Monday for David Collins’ appeal against conviction for conspiring to rob a John Bull retail store, but the case was adjourned to July 28.