Sears sentenced to life without parole
It took the same twelve member jury that convicted Hillaire Sears of murder, about three hours to recommend a custodial sentence. Sears, who was found guilty last week of the murder of Rodwell Neal, was ordered to spend the rest of his life in prison. Sears, who pleaded for mercy from the dock this morning, extended his sympathy to the victim’s family, and professed his unconditional love for his parents and his three-year-old daughter. He also said that if given a second chance, he believes he can one day become a productive member of society. He also expressed utter regret for the emotional pain his parents have endured since his arrest.
His attorney, Lutchman Sooknandan, called five witnesses to testify about Sears’ character prior to the March eighteenth, 2001 murder. The testimony came from a past employer, neighbours, friends of his parents, and a Coordinator for the Community Rehabilitation Department who had supervised Sears while on remand at Hattieville Prison. All the witnesses described Sears as a quiet, hard-working, polite young man.
For his part, Sooknandan asked the jury to consider the fact that the shooting was not a gang-related or drive-by murder, but an isolated case. He said that not because murder is on the increase should Sears pay the price for all those crimes committed, and emphasized that hanging a man won’t solve the crime problem. Sears, he said, will live with the guilt for the rest of his life.
Also in court today was the editor of the Belize Times, Andrew Steinhauer. But the purpose of Steinhaeur’s appearance was to defend, not report. He had to answer to trial judge, Christopher Blackman for the inaccurate headline of the case in last week’s issue of his newspaper. Although the sentence was issued only today, the paper bore the headline, “Sears to Hang”. Steinhauer told the court that he was not acquainted with the new law regarding murder and had assumed that all convicted murderers were sentenced to death.
As it stands, Class A murders, which are deemed cold-blooded murders, are accompanied by death sentences. Class B murders, which are murders by circumstance, carry the option of either the death sentence or life imprisonment. Justice Blackman reprimanded Steinhauer, demanding a complete apology in the next issue of the newspaper. He also required Steinhauer to take due care to ensure that the mistake does not happen again.
