With allegations surfacing that the main witness in a manslaughter case was shot and injured by a relative of the accused, Resident Magistrate Vivienne Harris has called for steps to be taken to protect the witness and that the case file be completed quickly to accommodate a preliminary enquiry.

When the case against 27-year-old tractor driver Carlington Rowe of Retirement, St James, was mentioned in the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court, the witness showed the court three bullet wounds he claimed to have sustained during the attack which, he said, was because of the case now before the court.

disturbed

RM Harris, who appeared quite disturbed by the allegations, denied bail for Rowe and ordered the clerk of court to contact the investigating officer, who was absent, so that the outstanding accident reconstruction report could be placed on file for the court to set a date when the matter could be heard. As a result, the case was set for today.

Francis was charged with manslaughter and failure to report an accident, stemming from an alleged hit-and-run incident in Retirement, St James, in September 2008, which claimed the life of six-year-old Jevaughn Sutherland. He was arrested in February of this year in St Mary.

fatal accident

His lawyer, Kenneth McLeod, told the court that his client knows nothing about the attack on the complainant and said his client was not the driver of the ill-fated motor vehicle involved in the fatal accident.

Allegations are that on September 19 last year, the child was walking to the shop when Rowe was seen speeding on the road, which was wet due to rain. The child was hit and thrown into the air before falling to the ground. The father of the child, who knew Rowe, and saw what had happened, called out to the accused but he did not stop. Jevaughn was rushed to the Cornwall Regional Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Rowe was held at a location in St Mary on February 25 and was subsequently handed over to the Montego Bay police.