A war of words appears to be brewing between lawyers for incarcerated dancehall entertainer Vybz Kartel and his three co-accused and the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Attorneys for the quartet on Monday responded to recent comments by Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn regarding the recent UK based Privy Council ruling in the case.
In a report published in the Jamaica Observer on Monday, DPP Paula Llewellyn sought to clarify her actions leading up to a decision by then Supreme Court judge Lennox Campbell to continue the 2014 murder trial of Kartel and his co-accused after he became aware of an attempt to bribe the 11-member jury to achieve an acquittal.
Ms. Llewellyn outlined that the judge sought the opinion of defence and prosecuting council on the matter, but ultimately made the decision to continue the trial.
The DPP also cited as unfortunate what she termed an attempt by defence counsel to spread misinformation regarding her role in the matter.
Speaking with Radio Jamaica News last week, Bert Samuels, one of the attorneys representing the accused men, said the DPP erred when she asked the judge to continue the case, after learning about the bribery allegations involving one of the jurors.
He added that it would be unfortunate for Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn to seek a retrial in the Vybz Kartel case given her role in having the initial case continued in the Supreme Court.
In their response Monday, lawyers for Kartel and his co-accused said they were unaware of any misinformation campaign, nor were they part of any such campaign. They also pointed out that there was no evidence to connect any of the defendants with the activities of the tainted juror.
The Privy Council last Thursday quashed the murder convictions of the four men - Adidja 'Vybz Kartel' Palmer, Shawn 'Shawn Storm' Campbell, Kahira Jones and Andre 'Mad Suss' St. John - and sent the case back to Jamaica's Court of Appeal for a decision to be made on whether the matter should be retried. The lawlords indicated that the trial should not have continued with the tainted juror.
Meanwhile, the DPP has indicated that her office is preparing to make submissions to the Court of Appeal regarding the matter of a retrial.
Defence counsel have urged members of the public to refrain from seeking to try this matter in public space while indicating that any attempt to associate their clients with alleged offers made by the tainted juror, 'Juror X', is bound to act adversely against them in the minds of potential jurors should the matter be retried.
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