The Office of the Public Defender has secured a $300,000 award from the Government on behalf of Kadian Bourne, the then 12-year-old Denham Town High student who was shot and injured while sleeping in her house during the 2001 massacre in Tivoli Gardens, west Kingston.
In the wake of the bloodbath, 27 persons were killed during an alleged shoot-out between gunmen and the security forces, which sparked public outcry and intense debate for months following.
Five years later, the court has ruled that the Government should compensate Kadian, now 17, who was shot through the knee.
To date, the Office of the Public Defender has won three cases against the state arising from the Tivoli Gardens incident in 2001.
The office had also recovered damages amounting to $100,000 each for two young men who were forced to lay face down on the asphalt for hours by the security forces.
Meanwhile, Government has had to pay out approximately $60 million to persons who brought claims against public sector agencies and agents of the state since the office was established in 2000.
