BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – ESHA and Amare Browne were given a second chance in life yesterday (Feb. 10) when they appeared at the Basseterre High Court for their sentencing hearing.
“THIS is your chance in life to put the past behind you and move ahead in life,” His Lordship Justice Errol Thomas told the two Brownes who were found guilty of fraud on Wednesday, January 26, 2010.
“I will spare you two custodial sentencing and give you a suspended sentencing, which means you will have to be on your P’s and Q’s. I hope you have learnt your lesson. There were persons that spoke well of you…you have to recognise that you have done wrong,” the judge said.
According to the legal dictionary section on www.thefreedictionary.com, suspended sentencing in criminal law is a penalty applied by a judge to a defendant convicted of a crime, which the judge provides will not be enforced (is suspended) if the defendant performs certain services, makes restitution to persons harmed, stays out of trouble, or meets other conditions. Should the sentenced party fail to follow these requirements, then the suspended sentence may be enforced.
Justice Thomas told Esha that she would be given a one-year suspended sentence, and if she were found to be involved in any criminal activity she would automatically spend nine months in prison. He also told Amare that he would be on a nine-month suspended sentence and if he too were involved in any criminal activity he would serve a six-month sentence at Her Majesty’s prison.
The prosecution team was led by Crown Counsel Garth Wilkin, who said that on February 4, 2009 the two accused had fraudulently obtained US$800 from the St. Kitts Royal Beach Casino in Frigate Bay in exchange for counterfeit currency.
Betty-Ann Gilbert, a native of Grenada, was called by defence counsel Chesley Hamilton to take the stand as a character witness for Esha.
Gilbert said she is one of Esha’s daughter’s godmother and has known the young woman for 10 of the 11 years she has been living in St. Kitts.
She asked His Lordship to consider that Esha is a first-time offender and that she has a young child, adding that she has known her to be an honest person.
Speaking on behalf of his client, Hamilton read a letter from the St. Kitts Royal Beach Casino that was addressed to the court asking the judge to be lenient with Esha.
The letter stated that they took the matter very seriously and that Esha had already lost her job and reputation because of the crime.
Hamilton said that he hoped the court would allow her another chance to go the straight and narrow way.
Dr. Henry Browne, who presented mitigations on behalf of Amare, told the court that before the commission of the incident his client had boasted an unblemished record.
“He can do with a second chance, if he doesn’t make do of his second chance only himself he has to blame,” Dr. Browne said.
Dr. Browne also said that his client comes from a good family and sought to be fruitful and productive at an early age by seeking employment.
Before handing down sentence, Justice Thomas said that according to the social inquiry report presented by Probation Officer Kishma Huggins, Esha was portrayed as a hard working independent woman and her good attributes would allow her to contribute positively to society.
He also noted that Probation Officer Elvis Thomas reported that Amare has been well behaved up until the incident and that it was an unfortunate situation he was in. However, he is industrious and should be given a second chance.
In handing down sentence to Esha and Amare Browne, who are not related, His Lordship said the court was in no way downplaying the seriousness of the crime, but he considered several factors before passing judgment, which included their age, unblemished record, evidence in court and social report.
