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Halshane Burke reports
Constable Melvin Whyte, the police officer charged in connection with the pepper-spraying of a student at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, in April 2020, has been acquitted.
He was found not guilty on Friday morning when he appeared before the Kingston and St. Andrew Parish Court.
Whyte was represented by attorneys John Jacobs, Courtney Rowe and D'Ondre Buchanan.
The constable had been charged with assault occasioning bodily harm, following an investigation by the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) and a ruling from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in December 2020.
The case stemmed from an incident on April 28, 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 curfew restrictions.
Reports indicated that Whyte and another officer were patrolling the UWI Mona campus when they saw a group of students outside Taylor Hall playing Ludo.
The officers reminded the group of the curfew and instructed them to return to their dorm rooms.
According to evidence presented in court, the complainant approached the officers' service vehicle and began arguing, insisting that the students were already at their "homes" on campus and did not need to return inside.
The confrontation escalated and the student was pepper-sprayed.
Mr. Buchanan argued that, in addition to national curfew orders, UWI's own COVID-19 policy required students living on campus to remain in their rooms during curfew hours.
He said Constable Whyte was duty-bound to enforce a lawful directive and acted within the scope of that responsibility.
In delivering his verdict, Parish Judge Broderick Smith cited credibility issues raised by the defence and accepted that Whyte acted in self-defence.
The judge noted that the early uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 virus and its potential risks would have weighed on the officer's judgement at the time.
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