Lawyer urges being selective in handing over illegal guns to the police
People who are willing to hand over an illegal gun to the police have to be careful which police officer they give the firearm to as the possibility exists that the weapon may return to the streets.
Lawyer Grant Connell
That’s the caution of lawyer Grant Connell, in a statement he made at the Serious Offences Court (SOC) on Monday April 20, 2026, as he pleaded with Chief Magistrate Collin John, to not impose a custodial sentence on 25-year-old Deondre France.
Moments before, Connell had asked prosecutor Renrick Cato, to support his plea for a non-custodial sentence for France who had pleaded guilty, stating that not everyone that was caught with a gun deserved to be sent to prison.
Cato did not support Connell, stating that France could have given the weapon to the police, and the prevalence of gun related crimes meant that a strong message had to be sent.
“…you start me up…,” Connell responded, “give a gun to wrong police and it may end up in the hands of someone who would actually use it,” Connell told the court, while noting that there are instances where people gave illegal guns to police officers and these guns have ended up back in the hands of criminals.
Connel was making a passionate plea which was coupled with an ‘exceptional’ social report from Susannie Boyea, an educator and Justice of the Peace (JP) who appeared on behalf of France. The pleas from Connell and Boyea did nothing to stop the SOC from jailing France for 27 months.
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