Judge fed up of chopping incidents in SVG

Outspoken High Court judge Frederick Bruce-Lyle has made his feelings known about the number chopping incidents here in St Vincent and the Grenadines.{{more}}

“I am fed up of the chopping and chopping in this country. We are coming famous for it in the Caribbean,” the judge said on Wednesday, October 5.

Bruce-Lyle was at time addressing Jasper Charles, who was sentenced to 10 years in jail for wounding his disabled brother, Egbert Thomas in a cutlass attack on March 12, 2010.

Charles, a resident of New Chapmans, had initially pleaded not guilty to the charge, but later changed his plea to guilty after the court took a 15 minute break.

He had no legal representation.

“You are lucky you changed your plea, because at the end of the trial, I was going to sink you…,” Bruce-Lyle firmly stated.

“I am getting concerned with all these chopping. Instead of progressing, we are going backwards…SVG is developing a serious reputation…,” the judge stated.

Bruce-Lyle said the prisoner criminal record worries him, because most of his convictions are for conflict with parents and siblings. “You need some time to think; If you didn’t plead guilty you were going to get more,” he added.(KW)