BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – TWO sex offenders under the age of 30 were sentenced today (Mar. 28) to a combined 38-year imprisonment by His Lordship Justice Errol Thomas at the Basseterre High Court.
The first to be sentenced was 26-year-old Craig Bradshaw of Parsons Village. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison for unlawful carnal knowledge of a young girl who was 13 years old at the time of the crime.
According to evidence presented in court, the offence was committed at West Street, Basseterre between July 24 and 25, 2009.
A 12-member jury found him guilty of the crime after the prosecution team, which was led by Rhonda Nisbett-Browne, had called on four witnesses to support its claims.
Bradshaw was represented by Barrister-at-Law Marsha Henderson, who called on a character witness known as ‘Appetite’ to speak on behalf of her client.
Henderson said Bradshaw was remorseful about what he did and asked his Lordship for leniency. She also said that the persons, who were interviewed in the social inquiry report prepared by Probation Officer Jerrold Connor, stated that Bradshaw was a quiet and well-behaved young man.
She also mentioned that he was raised by his grandmother and his father had shown no interest when informed of the incident.
His Lordship however quickly reminded the court that being raised by a grandmother without a mother or father was no excuse for committing a crime, and he referred to a book, ‘My Mother Who Fathered Me’, written by Jamaican author Edith Clarke.
Justice Thomas said that although Bradshaw’s record was spotless, he had committed a serious crime which resulted in the birth of a child on Aril 20, 2010.
His Lordship added that although the birth of the child was not brought into evidence, other evidence presented in court revealed that Bradshaw did not use a condom when he had sex with the girl. He also said that the convicted man gave the girl EC$50 on completion of the unlawful act.
The maximum amount of years for the crime is life imprisonment.
The second offender was David Morton (24) of Lower Cayon, who was sentenced to 18 years for raping a girl who was 16 years old at the time.
The case ended in a hung jury when first tried at the May 2010 Assizes when he was represented by Senior Counsel Dr. Henry Browne. This time however, he was unrepresented and was found guilty by a 12-member jury on March 2, 2011.
The court was told that the incident occurred at about 5:00 a.m. on June 27, 2009 in the vicinity of the Cayon Primary School while the girl was on her way home from the Frigate Bay Strip.
Morton had called on Solomon Norton, a character witness, to give evidence on his behalf.
Norton told the court that he had taught the convicted man at Sunday school and never had any issues with him, and asked for mercy on his behalf.
Morton pleaded with Justice for leniency and told the court he had realised that he was found guilty of serious crime.
He said he, a sister and three younger brothers were raised by their mother and that he had made some bad decisions in his life.
His Lordship told him that the evidence presented in court indicated that the offence was a planned one, because after leaving the Frigate Bay Strip he had camped out for the girl.
Judge Thomas also said that the crime was violent and that he also humiliated the young girl.
Before the closing of the sentencing hearing, the judge told the court it was important that the press highlighted why the two men were given such heavy sentences, adding that Parliament did not pass the law to decorate the court, as the maximum sentence is life imprisonment.
“You don’t deter a man from having sex with a minor with light sentencing. It cannot be pleasant for any society and we cannot allow this to go on. These are young children these men are having sex with. One of the men did not use a condom and the press must be responsible in helping to eliminate older men from having sex with younger children. Society cannot go on like this…you must educate the population,” Justice Thomas said.
