In a poignant tribute to late legal luminary Osbourne Charles, attorney Hazel Thompson-Ahye recounts a transformative courtroom experience that shaped her professional journey. The reflection begins with a vivid courtroom scene where a witness resembling “Miss Mavis” – an East Indian woman with complex domestic arrangements – testified against her husband’s murder suspect, claiming to have seen the accused “every minute of the day.
Defense counsel Osbourne Charles dismantled her testimony through deceptively simple questioning about domestic chores, ultimately exposing the impossibility of her claim. The young law student initially reacted with moral outrage at what she perceived as witness intimidation, confronting Charles about his destructive cross-examination technique.
Through years of observing Charles and other legal masters like Desmond Allum and Vernon De Lima, Thompson-Ahye developed deeper understanding of defense counsel’s duty to test witness credibility. This education proved crucial when she later handled a murder case involving teenage defendant and victim. Applying Charles’ techniques, she extracted critical information about the victim’s violent propensity and established the incident occurred near her client’s home, suggesting self-defense given the defendant’s extensive injuries.
The validation came when Police Commissioner Trevor Paul predicted her success moments before the jury returned a not guilty verdict within 15 minutes of deliberation. Now mourning Charles’ passing, Thompson-Ahye expresses gratitude shared by countless lawyers who benefited from his expertise, concluding with a prayer for his peaceful journey to the “heavenly court.”