BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – A 12-member jury yesterday (May 9) unanimously found Kemron Murray of Stonefort Heights guilty of housebreaking and larceny; an offence he committed on April 29, 2011.
The trial was a very short one which began and ended yesterday with the five-man-seven-woman jury giving their verdict after just one hour of deliberation.
Murray was unrepresented during his trial while the prosecution team was led by Crown Counsel Greatess Gordon who was ably assisted by Crown Counsel Rhonda Nisbett-Brown.
The prosecution team called a total of three witnesses to make its case and was successful in proving that sometime between 12:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. on the day in question, Murray broke and entered the dwelling house of Mansfield James from which he stole a number of canned foods.
The items stolen were one corned beef, one salmon, one Vienna sausage, one baked beans, one tin of sliced carrots and one apple juice, all to the value of EC$50.
James testified that on the day the items were stolen, he was in Basseterre when he received a phone call and immediately went home.
He said that upon reaching his house, he noticed that his bathroom window was destroyed.
"I looked around to see if anything was missing and I noticed that a bag with canned food stuff that was on the counter in the kitchen was missing," James told the court.
Lloyd Cranston, an individual who tends to cattle in the same location, testified that he saw Murray leaving James' house through a window.
"At about 12:30 p.m. that day I was going to see about my cattle when I realised their rope was cut. I went to look for the cattle and I was walking in the direction of Mansfield's house when I heard a rattling sound on one of the windows. I had my head down and when I took my head up I saw half of someone's body was through the window."
Cranston testified that he started singing to alert the perpetrator that someone was outside but the person continued into the house and that he did not see the individual's face at that time.
The witness stated that he walked for some distance past the house, turned around, retraced his steps and saw Murray coming exiting the house through the same window.
"He [Murray] came down out of the window and I looked at him. We were not far apart. He wore a dark jean pant and a shirt. He did not say anything…just headed towards his [Murray] house."
In his cross examination of Cranston, Murray’s only question was: "If someone is coming out of a window with their face down, how can you recognise the person's face?"
In response, the witness said that Murray came out of the window and walked passed him, and he saw his face because the distance between them was a short one.
When asked about the items by the foreman of the jury, Cranston said that he did not see Murray with anything in his hands or did he see any bag on the ground.
Woman Police Constable Desirene Wilson also testified.
After the prosecution rested its case, Murray was given the option to testify on his own behalf or call witnesses to give evidence. He however remained silent and did not call any witness.
Murray is expected to be sentenced in two weeks following a Social Inquiry Report.
