Convicted of murder on strength of written statement

Japheth Bennett

The murder count did not increase since the cause of death has been determined; however, the poor conviction rate was increased by one today. Twenty year old Japheth Bennett, who at the age of seventeen was accused of murder Ellis Meighan senior, was found guilty on Tuesday. Bennett appeared before Justice Adolph Lucas today where we was sentenced to life in prison. The conviction of Bennett came as a result of an amendment to the evidence act which allows for a statement given by a witness to be tendered into evidence when the witnesses for the prosecution are either dead, out of the country or in fear of a threat. In the main witness statement recorded in 2009, that just before nine, while on his way to his sister’s house, he heard four to five shots and upon reaching the corner of Banak Street and Central American Boulevard, he saw the body of man on the street. He went further on to state that he saw a man, whom he identified as Bennett, standing over Meighan Senior’s body with what appeared to be a gun. But during the trial, the witness tried to retract his statement and said that all he saw was the body of a man lying on the ground but at the time did not recognize him and so he continued on his way. The prosecution was able to get the statement admitted into evidence which jurors deliberated on, and as a result found Bennett Guilty.