A known defendant to the Court, Cheston Green, has found himself in trouble with the law yet again. The Canefield man has been denied bail and is now remanded into custody at the Dominica State Prison charged with Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH) against his ex-girlfriend.
The charge of the police is that, on December 27, 2023, having entered a dwelling home in Mahaut as a trespasser, Green who was armed with a cutlass, did unlawfully and maliciously wound Mindy Bougouneau.
The accused appeared before Magistrate Pearl Williams where the charge was read to him but was not required to enter a plea since GBH is an indictable offense, expected to be tried at the High Court before a Judge and jury.
At the hearing, Police Prosecutor Inspector Etienne objected to bail on the grounds that at the time the alleged offense was committed, Green was on bail for two separate offenses.
“On July 13, 2022, he was granted bail for wounding and threat and later that year on October 14, 2022, he was also granted bail for possession of ammunition,” the prosecutor told the Court.
He further noted that the virtual complainant in this case stood as Green’s surety for his bail on July 13, 2022. He highlighted that Bougouneau is consequently relinquishing her responsibilities as his surety, warranting the revocation of bail.
Inspector Etienne stressed that given the seriousness of the offense, the Court should refrain from considering bail for the defendant due to the high propensity for him to re-offend while on bail.
Responding, defense attorney Zena Moore Dyer remarked, “I have nothing to say. If the need arises, I will deal with his matter in the High Court. I leave the decision to this honorable Court.”
In handing down her decision, Magistrate Williams highlighted that according to section 4:3 of the bail acts, the defendant doesn’t have an inherent entitlement to bail.
She additionally expressed that following the prosecution’s arguments, the Court is not satisfied that there exists sufficient reason to grant bail to Green.
Bail was denied to the accused and he was remanded into custody at the Dominica State Prison. He is expected to return to Court on April 25, 2024, for the start of his Preliminary Inquiry. During this stage of the case, the Magistrate will determine if there is sufficient evidence for the matter to be tried at the High Court.
to be honest i dont know what happened to him why he fully immersed himself in the street life. was a shy curious well brought up young boy FROM A GOOD HOME with decent parents (noone is perfect), then he just went west. completely west. No longer Cheston, but commonly known as Nut. sad state of affairs.
The magistrate highlighted that…”the defendant does not have an inherent entitlement to bail”..so why do these “legal luminaries” keep releasing these dangerous individuals back into our midst after they’ve committed all kinds of heinous crimes?
Let’s hope that the bail denial in this case will be the start of positive change within our critically important judicial system.
Too many wicked and bad-minded people are being given a second (and sometimes third) chance to wreak havoc in our beautiful little country while they wait for “their case to call”..