The well known appeal of the government versus Barry Bowen and the Landowners Association goes back into court on Friday. The C.J. on February thirteenth, 2009 ruled against a proposal by G.O.B. to amend section seventeen of the constitution. That amendment would have not only vested petroleum and other mineral rights on government, but it […]
The controversial contract signed between Diane Haylock on behalf of NICH and David Gegg’s Cruise Solutions wound up in court today. Chief Justice Abdulai Conteh ruled that the contract does not conform to the NICH act. The concession agreement was signed between Haylock and Gegg in June of 2008 and provided exclusive rights for the […]
A jury of seven women and five men deliberated for almost six hours and it was unable to reach a verdict in the case of Fabian Bain A.K.A. Carlos Escalante. Bain was charged with the murder of security guard Fortunato Chun who was shot and killed on November twenty-third, 2006. Chun was shot in the […]
Also in the Supreme Court, Roman Petzold and Francis “Pancho” Lopez, charged with the rape of a seventeen year old high school student, were found guilty of the charge today by a jury of seven men and two women. The jury deliberated for over five hours and its verdict was not unanimous. Seven of the […]
Today was the second day of arguments in the appeal case between the government and Barry Bowen and the Landowners Association. The appeal follows a ruling in February of this year when Chief Justice Abdulai Conteh ruled against a proposal by government to amend section seventeen of the Constitution. Today News Five spoke with attorney […]
Magistrates’ Court was the scene of some commotion today as a case of Burglary was adjourned. Twenty-five year old Ernie Miranda was wanted by police for the burglary of Yvonne Little’s home in January of 2009. When Miranda was apprehended at his home on Zacaranda Street on Sunday, he alleges that he was brutally beaten […]
A tailor charged with aggravated assault of a minor is out free on bail. Fifty one year-old tailor, Angel Arias was charged today in Magistrates’ Court for allegedly touching a fourteen year-old girl inappropriately at his business on New Road. The girl claimed that Arias took advantage of her when he was taking her measurements […]
The courtroom today did not have the drama it did on Wednesday when the land rights case of the Mayas versus the government began. Hundreds packed the courtroom then, spilling into Battlefield Park when opening arguments were heard. It was quiet today when further arguments were heard before Chief Justice Abdulai Conteh. The Mayan Leaders’ […]
When Court resumes on Tuesday morning, Young will also use an affidavit from the Lands Commissioner, Manuel Rodriguez, to substantiate her case. And while Professor Wilk says the Mayans are merely asking for protection of their land rights, Young says the implications are huge. Dr. Richard Wilk, Claimant’s Expert Witness “What they’re claiming right now […]
When we caught up with him at the National Teachers’ Day celebration in Belmopan, the prime minister also spoke about the ongoing Maya land rights case and on the decision of the Chief Justice to quash the former Prime Minister Said Musa’s committal to stand trial for Theft at the Supreme Court level. Prime Minister […]
Meanwhile at the Appellate Court, arguments were presented in the appeal of the murder conviction of Elvis Myers. This case has been drawing much attention because it can have a bearing on thirty-eight other rulings, made by Justice Troadio Gonzalez. The grounds put forward by Attorney Hubert Elrington on behalf of Myers, is that Justice […]
The long running Maya land rights case against the government was back in court on Wednesday. Hundreds travelled from south to the city in support or against the issue of land rights. Submissions were made by attorney for the Mayan Leaders Alliance and the Toledo Alcaldes’ Association, Antoinette Moore. The case was expected to continue […]
Also in court, two men plus one bullet, that equals jail time. And in this case, the bullet was allegedly being smuggled into prison by thirty year old Alwin Marin and twenty-six year old Ashton Myers. But their plan was thwarted and instead they appeared in court today where they were charged with Keeping Ammunition […]
In October of 2007, the Chief Justice ruled in favour of the Mayan Leaders’ Alliance and the Toledo Alcaldes’ Association in a civil suit over communal land rights for the Mayan people of Conejo and Santa Cruz. In that case, the C.J. ruled that the people of the two villages have constitutionally protected customary land […]
That was the legal battle in court, and outside it was evident that the Mayas were a divided house today. In fact, while their common concerns are over land rights, there were two groups with opposing views. Marion Ali picked up on the sights and sounds of both sides at the Battlefield Park. Cristina Coc, […]
United Cane Farmers, the breakaway group of caneros from Orange Walk and Corozal districts were in court again today, this time to challenge the issue of the Quality Improvement Program. This is the controversial program that the management of the Belize Cane Farmers Association is trying to implement on the industry. Hubert Elrington, the lawyer […]
They want to be legally recognized as United Cane Farmers, but the only formal grouping, Belize Cane Farmers Association, doesn’t want any other group rocking the sugar industry and getting a slice of the pie. The challenge has been before the courts for over a year and today when it finally came up, both groups […]
Soon after the change of government in February 2008, the Barrow administration vowed that it would jail former leaders of the Musa administration for alleged corruption. One of the issues on which Prime Minister Dean Barrow focused was a grant of U.S. twenty million dollars from the government of Venezuela, only ten million of which […]
It’s is so frequent it is hardly news—now that cases have been falling apart, but one hearing stood out today. And that’s because of the magnitude of the charge that nineteen year old Jamie Chavarria was freed of in the court of Justice Adolph Lucas. Chavarria was charged along with twenty-six year old Edwin Flowers […]
And in the court of appeals today, Attorney Alifa Elrington made a successful case on behalf twenty year old Steven Manzanero, who was convicted of Manslaughter last May. Manzanero had been sentenced to fifteen years in connection with the stabbing of Levy Quewell on the night of March twenty-sixth 2005. But in Manzanero’s appeal hearing, […]
Also in court, eighteen year old construction worker of Haulze Street has been charged for the murder of thirty-five year old Dennis Nembhard. Today, when Emmerson Eaghan appeared in Magistrates’ Court to answer to the charge, he was remanded into custody until June thirtieth by Magistrate Dorothy Flowers. The incident occurred around seven-thirty Monday night […]
The case of three men and three minors accused in the sensational case of businessman Jose Shoman and his family came up briefly in court today. The incident goes back to the night of December thirteenth, 2008 when the six allegedly concocted a plot to rob and murder the Shoman family at their residence on […]
In other news from the courts, the Appellate Court this morning set aside the murder conviction of forty-five year old Jose Zetina, a former Police Constable on the basis of provocation. Zetina was behind bars serving a life imprisonment term for the brutal murder of his common-law-wife Rosa Isabel Mejia. He will instead now serve […]
In the Supreme Court, meanwhile, Justice Michelle Arana freed twenty-two year old Brandon Taylor, of the charge of Attempted Murder of Emmerick Meggs, who was unable to testify due to the injuries he sustained in the shooting. This came when the prosecution, led by Crown Counsel Cecil Ramirez, entered a nolle prosequi that they could […]
And in the Magistrates’ Court, twenty-four year old Mark Staine was charged with the Aggravated Assault of a nine year old girl. Staine pleaded not guilty to the charge and the prosecution was quick to object to bail. Magistrate Albert Hoare agreed and Staine was remanded in custody until June eighteenth, his trial date. The […]
