Police constable Jesus Maroquin was formally charged with murder this morning for the 2002 shooting of Egbert Gordon Jr., the mentally ill man who had barricaded himself in an unoccupied house at the Los Lagos subdivision. But while the arraignment was proceeding in front of Magistrate Dorothy Flowers, next door at the Supreme Court Chief […]
Chief Justice Abdulai Conteh was not the only member of the legal community with strong feelings about the belated arrest of Jesus Maroquin. Prior to her Supreme Court appearance we asked Antoninette Moore–attorney for the Gordon family–if the hastily organised arraignment pre-empted her constitutional arguments. Antoninette Moore, Gordon Family Attorney
For Egbert Gordon Senior, father of the victim, the case is far bigger than a single cop’s mistake. He believes that the shooting and subsequent cover up amount to a far reaching conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. Egbert Gordon Sr., Father of Victim
While the legal implications of the Maroquin case are large, the killing also raises the important issue of how society treats its mentally ill. Secretary of the Mental Health Association, Kathy Esquivel, believes that the unnecessary death of Egbert Gordon Junior is just one of many instances of discrimination. Kathy Esquivel, Mental Health Association Secretary
He cheated death this weekend when a bullet-proof vest stopped two slugs to his chest. Today I spoke to the man whose name is still prefaced by the word “marked.” Jacqueline Godwin, Reporting Belize City police say they still have no leads into the attempted murder of twenty-three year old Raymond Myers. Myers was sitting […]
Another U.S. citizen is in trouble with Belizean law enforcement tonight. Thirty-eight year old Mauricio Barraza is accused of torching his apartment, located at number three Mohammed Street. Barraza appeared in court today, but because arson is an indictable offence, no plea was taken. He was offered but did not meet bail of five thousand […]
A young mother has been charged with the seldom prosecuted crime of child neglect. Twenty-one year old Arlene Tillett of number three Lakeview Street was formally arraigned on the charge today before Magistrate Dorothy Flowers. According to police, on December fifteenth they received a call that a child was left home alone and that the […]
Disobeying a summons … It’s an act that happens often, much to the dismay of attorneys … but tonight they’re not letting a Belize City woman get away with it. Twenty-five year old Graciela Castillo was served with a summons to appear in court on December eleventh to testify against Burton Garoy, a defendant charged […]
More details are emerging regarding the background of James Ernest Thompson, The U.S. fugitive turned over by Belize authorities to the F.B.I. yesterday and flown back to the States. According internet reports from U.S. media sources, Thompson, also known as Earnest James Ujaama, entered into a plea bargain with U.S. federal prosecutors in April 2003 […]
An accident on the Western Highway yesterday has claimed the life of one of three people injured. Police report that twenty-one year old Levan Thompson succumbed to injuries suffered in the crash that occurred between miles sixty-one and sixty-two.
The Dangrigan municipal airstrip was closed to all traffic as of three this afternoon in order to effect urgent repairs. According to a press release from the Belize Airports Authority, a contract was signed Monday with M & R Construction to completely rehabilitate the badly deteriorated runway at a cost of just over two hundred […]
Two southside Belize City primary schools will receive funding of close to a million dollars for badly needed new classrooms. According to the Ministry of National Development, financing for the construction at St. John Vianney R.C. and St. Luke Methodist was approved at a meeting held on Friday by the Social Investment Fund’s board of […]
We publicise the launch of their Kettle Appeal and join them for their annual children’s dinner. Today News Five’s Kendra Griffith found the Salvation Army continuing to honour the spirit of Christmas on behalf of the City’s most needy residents. Kendra Griffith, Reporting This morning a roomful of senior Belizeans gathered at the Salvation Army […]
As Christmas Day draws nearer virtually every day brings some event for children and this morning’s venue was the headquarters of the Belize Red Cross. According to National First Aid Instructor and party organiser Adela Parra, each year the organisation tries to reach out to as many kids as possible. Adela Parra, Christmas Party Organizer, […]
If you’ve been in Belize City over the last week or so the traffic alone will tell you that Christmas shopping is rapidly reaching its peak. Today I ventured out trying to find where all that money is coming from. Jacqueline Godwin, Reporting This Christmas, people may be bawling haad time but they sure have […]
