Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter

St. Andrew businessman, 33-year-old Steven Grant, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of 17-year-old Dunoon Technical High School student Kymani Bailey.

Justice Paulette Williams ordered yesterday that Grant must serve 17 years before he can be eligible for parole.

Grant, of Queen Hill, St. Andrew was convicted by a Home Circuit Court jury last week Friday.

Bailey was shot 13 times outside a nightclub in New Kingston on April 18, 1999.

Bailey had left the club saying he was going outside to urinate. His body had 11 gunshot wounds to the back and two to the front.

Retrial

Grant was convicted in March 2003 of Bailey's murder but the United Kingdom Privy Council quashed the conviction and sent the case back to the Court of Appeal to decide whether there should be a retrial.

Grant had said in an unsworn statement that he was urinating near a wall when he heard someone saying it was a hold up. He looked around and saw a man pointing a gun at him and he pulled his licensed firearm and fired at the man.

Justice Williams, in passing sentence, said she had to balance all the factors and that included Grant's good character, as well as the fact that he had taken a life. The judge referred to the judgment of the Privy Council which stated that the proliferation of shots to the back was a formidable problem for Grant to overcome. She said the justice of the case did not allow her to just sentence him to life imprisonment without recommending the number of years he should serve before parole.

Grant has been in custody since he was first convicted in February 2003.

barbara.gayle@gleanerjm.com