Should Ramnarace Brother’s Murderer Be Sentenced to Death?
Ramnarace Brothers
What is a just punishment for the perpetrator of the Ramnarace brothers’ murders? Numerous Belizeans are calling on authorities to invoke the death penalty in this instance. The deadly attack was caught on Jon Ramnarace’s home surveillance camera. That video has since been leaked to the public and has gone viral on social media, garnering reactions from thousands of Belizeans. The shocking footage has led to a call for the killer to be sentenced to death upon conviction. News Five’s Paul Lopez takes a closer look.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
The nation continues to reel from the ruthless murders of brothers Jon and David Ramnarace on New Year’s Eve in Belmopan. The question of just punishment, in light of such a callous act of violence, is once again at the center of public discourse. The death penalty is also at the heart of that discussion. We put the question to Belmopan Mayor Sharon Palacio and Pastor Richard Smith earlier today.
Sharon Palacio
Sharon Palacio, Mayor, Belmopan
“My mind is on justice, there has to be justice for this family, the families, because such an act and as you rightfully said, you saw the video and whoever that person is in an expert and is highly trained and such a person needs to be punished, the full brunt of the law, whatever is in there, that person needs to get maximum punishment.”
Richard Smith
Richard Smith, Pastor
“Truth be told, we cannot exempt from death sentence, because I think it is a hard question you are asking, because when you see the traumatized, Paul that little kid is traumatized for the rest of her life, to see my mom got shot in front of my very own eyes, the damage that has been done to this lady, the amount of money spent, money you don’t have. As I looked at this situation, shot all two and went into the house and came back and shot this individual who is already dead and to shoot extra, there is no mercy, no remorse over the situation, and I think our judicial system is too light, because if this guy has enough money he will walk away. The bible says the soul that kills shall surely die, so if the man kill hang the man.”
The Commissioner of Police agrees that the killer dispatched the siblings without a second thought. The shooter demonstrated experience in the handling of a firearm, and apparent technical training, characteristics that have led the commissioner to believe that the murderer was an expert.
Chester Williams
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
“Clearly, this is my opinion: the shooter have a wealth of experience in handling a firearm, the way he maneuvers the firearm and himself shows that he is well-trained and like you rightly said he had a specific intent to kill. Even after he had shot the victims outside, he went in, came out back and what he did when he came back outside showed the clear intent to kill.”
Reporter
“Is that the first time that suspect, the person you have seen in the video, have killed, or is that a professional person at work?”
Chester Williams
“I cannot say that I can’t say if he has killed before. Certainly I would agree that the manner in which he did it is outrageous and demonstrates some level of experience or expertise in firearms, but I would not go to the extent of saying that he has killed. I cannot say.”
Reporter
“Wouldn’t you also say some remorseless?”
Chester Williams
“Yes, certainly.”
Reporter
“So what we saw on that video is someone who apparently was trained to kill?”
Chester Williams
“Perhaps, but not trained by us.”
Belize does not have a mandatory death penalty in its laws; therefore, capital punishment must be invoked in specific instances at the start of a trial process. In this instance, the prosecution must determine whether the crime warrants such a response. Attorney Arthur Saldivar gave us further insight.
Arthur Saldivar
Arthur Saldivar, Attorney- at- law
“Looking at it, those young men didn’t have a fighting chance. That was murder in cold blood. Now, the police have arrested a suspect, charge a suspect, and are gathering evidence to marshal a prosecution of that suspect, but until such time that evidence is brought before the court that is that entire person is, a suspect with an allegation and the constitutional presumption of innocence. But, I will say this in respect to that, where we have a situation as such as this, where we are able to see the calculation that has gone into, the planning that has gone into, the execution of that act, it would be incumbent then on the DPPs office and I use the office, because certainly the DPP in this particular situation has her hands shackled, but the office would have to at the initial stage of the prosecution request that the death penalty be placed as a option upon successful prosecution. It has to come at the start of the process. The only reason why this conversation is not premature in this context is because it is required at the start of the process. One has to contemplate whether or not the crime that has been committed would warrant this kind of reaction from the onset. But, outside of that, the most important thing, apart from applying for that penalty is the gathering of the evidence, the marshalling of the evidence. And, here we have it that the tract record of our police department investigating one of its own has not been stellar.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Paul Lopez
