ANOTHER EXPERT contributing to the commission of enquiry into the deadly fire at the Armadale Juvenile Correctional Centre in St Ann has contradicted testimony provided by a retired forensic analyst during last Friday's session.

Tanya Kerr, a government analyst in the Forensic Science Laboratory, gave evidence yesterday that traces of tear gas were found at the scene. She, however, maintained that the gas was from a Han-Ball CS grenade, the object that was allegedly hurled into a dorm on the night of the May 22 fire at the facility.

Contradicting testimonies

Kerr said she found traces of a compound that is a breakdown of the CS Han-Ball grenade on clothing that was retrieved from one of seven wards who died on the night of the fire.

Her statement contradicts that of retired analyst Fitzmore Coates, who testified last Friday that the gas residue he found was a constituent of the metal CN grenade and not the Han-Ball CS, which was allegedly thrown into the office dorm by Constable Lawrence Burrell.

CN stands for the chemical chloroacetophenone, while CS stands for chlorobenzalmalo-nonitrile. Yesterday, Kerr main-tained that the active ingredients in CS and the CN gas do not look alike, and are not similar when they degrade.

Evidence not from tear gas

"In breakdown, the fingerprints would not look the same," said Kerr, explaining that this was so despite the fact that they both have a chlorine ion.

Under cross-examination from Jacqueline Samuels-Brown, the attorney representing the Office of the Children's Advocate, Kerr also told the enquiry that the substances found on the clothes could not have been from CN tear gas. Kerr also revealed that she found traces of a light hydrocarbon resembling gasolene, but noted that there were not enough characteristics to say that it was, in fact, gasolene.

The government analyst said several tests were conducted on the bodies of some wards who died and revealed that no dangerous or toxic substances were found. She resumes her testimony at the National Volunteer Centre on Camp Road in St Andrew today.

kimesha.walters@gleanerjm.com