By Denise Clarke, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
SEVEN CASES of questionable police killings, involving 15 police personnel, headlined yesterday's sitting of the Westmoreland Coroner's Court, among them the shooting of a 13-year-old boy.
Almost all of the cases were stalled and had to be rescheduled to next year as only a few of the police officers involved in the cases, and only some of the witnesses, were present.
The cases being heard include enquiries into the conduct of a corporal, who was involved in two of the shootings, and a constable who is on suspension.
In the case of Amari Wedderburn, the boy who was killed, the nine witnesses who showed expecting to give evidence were told to return to court on January 29.
Amari was shot earlier this year by a constable attached to the Negril police. The police contend that the teenager was accidentally shot on May 2 as a policeman struggled with a member of a crowd, who was trying to obstruct the lawman in his duties. The shooting led to a riot in sections of the resort town.
Attorney-at-law Ronald Parris is representing the Wedderburn family, while Vernon Ricketts is watching proceedings on behalf of the policeman.
The cases also include the 1999 killing of three men by a police party in Camp Mountain in Westmoreland.
ONLY ONE OF FOUR
The inquest into the death of Ricardo Watson, Owen Ricketts and Courtney Tenyhue was rescheduled to April 1 next year, as only one of four police officers involved in the case was present.
The Coroner, Senior Resident Magistrate Ernel Johnson, also heard that the guns alleged to have been recovered from two of the deceased men, and which were expected to be admitted into evidence, could not be located.
RM Johnson cautioned the police corporal present to seek legal advice before attempting to give evidence in court. The officer and another witness were bound over to return to court next year.
Allegations are that on September 24, 1999, police were carrying out a raid in the Camp Savannah Mountain area of Westmoreland when they were fired on from a hut. The police returned the fire, and when the shooting subsided, the three men were found dead.
It is also alleged that a .38 Smith and Wesson pistol with two live rounds and three spent shells was recovered, along with an unusually designed gun with no identifying marks.
Other cases re-scheduled for the Westmoreland Coroners court next year include Donavan Lewis, Devon Campbell, Dennis Maddan, Garland White, and Elvin Maitland, all of whom were killed by the police.
