3 weeks ago
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Police constable Noel Maitland has been convicted of the murder of his girlfriend, Donna-Lee Donaldson, ending a case that has transfixed Jamaica since her disappearance in 2022. The guilty verdict, handed down at the Home Circuit Court on Thursday afternoon, follows weeks of gripping testimony and marks the conclusion of one of the country’s most high-profile and emotionally charged criminal trials.
Maitland was also convicted of preventing the lawful burial of a corpse in relation to the disappearance of the 24-year-old influencer, call centre employee and entrepreneur. Donaldson was last seen at the Chelsea Manor Apartments in St Andrew, where Maitland resided. Prosecutors argued that the evidence presented over the course of the trial established not only that Donaldson is dead, but that Maitland took deliberate steps to conceal her body.
In his summation, trial judge Leighton Pusey carefully guided the seven-member jury through the legal thresholds they were required to meet, stressing the need for certainty beyond a reasonable doubt. Jurors were instructed to surrender their phones before retiring to deliberate, underscoring the seriousness and sensitivity of the proceedings in a case followed closely by the public for nearly four years.
The guilty verdict marks a pivotal moment in Jamaica’s criminal justice landscape, offering a measure of closure to Donaldson’s family while reigniting conversations about gender-based violence and accountability. Sentencing is expected to follow, as the country reflects on a case that has left a lasting imprint on the national consciousness.
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