17 hours ago
5
Senior Reporter
Almost eight years after five men were shot dead by police near their Laventille homes, the State has been ordered to pay their families more than $4 million in compensation.
In a recent judgment, High Court Judge Marcia Ayers-Caesar awarded damages to the families of Mechack Douglas, Shakeem Francois, Shaundell St Clair, Nicholas Barker and Kudiem Phillip, upholding claims for assault and battery and misfeasance in public office against the Office of the Attorney General.
The families claimed that on October 25, 2018, Douglas, 22, was liming, listening to music and playing cards with friends behind a home at Upper Wharton Street, Trou Macaque Road, Laventille, when officers from the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) entered the property, taunted him and shot him in the chest.
St Clair, 19, tried to run but an officer caught him, beat him with a gun and shot him.
Francois, Barker and Phillip, aged 15, 23 and 17, were also shot and killed. Another man, Williams, escaped and hid.
In its defence, the State claimed the men fired at officers and died in a shoot-out.
The families’ attorneys, led by Lee Merry, SC, pursued assault and battery and misfeasance claims instead of wrongful death, arguing the killings were intentional, not negligent.
Justice Ayers-Caesar accepted that position, finding the officers’ version of events was not credible based on the evidence.
She pointed to autopsies which showed Douglas and St Clair were shot in the chest at close range.
She also questioned the firearms police said they recovered from the men, saying they appeared unused.
“It is passing strange that neither weapon had a trace amount of blood, dirt, or any appearance as if they had been used at all,” she said.
She also criticised the lack of forensic evidence to support the police account.
“Given the overabundance of inconsistencies in the evidence presented on behalf of the Defendants, the Court holds the position that on a balance of probabilities the Claimants have produced a more plausible and probable explanation for the unfortunate incident which occurred on the date in question,” she said.
Justice Ayers-Caesar also raised concerns about the police investigation.
“The inadequacy of the investigation on the part of the T&T Police Service (TTPS) to take any steps to properly and thoroughly investigate this matter can only lead one to conclude that there may have been attempts to cover up what actually took place on the night in October 2018.”
She found the officers liable for misfeasance in public office.
“The unauthorised killing of the men on the date in question, coupled with the incredulous defence which they have put forward, clearly shows that the party of officers acted in bad faith and with reckless indifference as to the illegality of their actions and the potential harm to these young people,” she said.
Justice Ayers-Caesar awarded $125,000 in general damages for assault and battery and $75,000 for misfeasance in public office, along with additional aggravated and vindicatory damages to reflect the court’s condemnation of the officers’ conduct.
The families were also represented by Ajesh Sumessar. The Attorney General’s Office was represented by Stefan Jaikaran and Janine Joseph.
English (US) ·