BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - THE key witness in the prosecution's case against Roy Murray and Darrel Sutton told the court yesterday (Feb. 26) that she saw the accused men beating the victim, Nkosie Lucas.
Ms. Flemming gave evidence against the men who are jointly charged with one count each of inflicting grievous bodily harm and unlawful wounding, offences which were committed on October 28, 2011.
She testified that she knows both accused for about two years; Murray, from seeing him "liming" under a tree behind the Challengers bus stop and Sutton, from seeing him in her village of Newton Ground as well as in Challengers.
She explained that one the morning of the incident she was seated close to the door of her Youth Skills classroom at the Challengers Community Centre when she saw Murray in the hallway. She said he put his finger to his lips and signalled for her to be quiet.
She told the Court that he was wearing a blue "pinup" shirt and brown khaki pants. She said he went in the direction of the bathroom. She testified that a female student told the teacher something and the teacher left the classroom. She said it was then five men rushed into the classroom.
The witness said the men had shirts covering their faces but she recognised Murray by his clothing. She said she recognised Sutton because the shirt over his face was not tied properly and his dreadlocks were showing.
She told the court that the shirts covered the nose, mouth and ear area of the men's faces.
She said she saw the accused men beat Lucas for about five minutes with sticks and a baseball bat. She said she made eye contact with Sutton and when he realised the shirt was coming off of his face, he ran through the door.
She stated that she remembered the black shirts over the men's faces but she could not recall what clothes Sutton was wearing that morning.
It was revealed in cross examination that Lucas was not the only man beaten in the classroom that morning.
She was cross examined by Sutton’s attorney Chesley Hamilton.
Flemming stated that while one of the assailants stood at the door, the other four men rushed and beat Lucas and another man.
She said the students in the class ran and screamed when the men rushed in and when some of them, including her, ran for the door, they were stopped by the fifth assailant, so they ran to the back of the class.
Flemming was questioned at length about where, when and how often she saw the accused men and it was put to her that she was not being truthful in her responses to those questions. But Flemming maintained that she was being truthful.
She was also questioned at length about the particulars of Suttons facial features which she said she saw. She stumbled in answering which parts of his face were exposed and which parts were not.
Flemming had first testified that she only saw Sutton's dreadlocks and eyes but in cross examination she said she also saw his nose and mouth.
This was however clarified when His Lordship, Justice Darshan Ramdhani asked her if she saw his nose and mouth before or after the shirt began to fall from his face during the beating. She answered "after".
Also testifying for the prosecution was Dr. Sharon Archibald who told the Court that Lucas suffered a three-centimetre long laceration over his right eye, swelling on his right forearm and abrasions on his left forearm among other injuries, as a result of the beating.
The prosecution closed its case after the fourth witness gave evidence and Hamilton made a no-case submission in the jury's absence.
The matter continues today (Feb. 27) with the judge's ruling on the submission.
