In a significant development at the Home Circuit Court in Jamaica, defense attorney Hugh Wildman mounted a vigorous opposition against a prosecution motion seeking special testimony arrangements in the murder trial of six police officers. The contentious hearing centered on prosecutor Kathy-Ann Pyke’s application to permit three overseas witnesses to provide evidence via video link.
Wildman, representing four of the accused officers, systematically dismantled the prosecution’s request, asserting it lacked proper legal foundation. He emphasized that the application relied exclusively on a statement from an Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) officer—who is himself a witness in the case—rather than the required affidavit evidence directly from the unavailable witnesses. This approach, Wildman argued, constituted inadmissible hearsay evidence that failed to meet judicial standards.
The defense counsel bolstered his position with cited Canadian case law, maintaining that all procedural applications must be substantiated by sworn affidavits from the actual individuals unable to testify in person. He characterized the prosecution’s submission as improperly presented before the court.
Presiding Justice Sophia Carr-Jones has deferred ruling on the video testimony matter until Friday, allowing for judicial consideration of the competing arguments.
Concurrent with these legal arguments, the seven-member jury received an approximately month-long recess until April 13. Trial proceedings continue during their absence to address administrative matters and special applications that don’t require jury participation.
The defendants—Sergeant Simroy Mott, Corporal Donovan Fullerton, and Constables Andrew Smith, Sheldon Richards, Orandy Rose, and Richard Lynch—face murder charges related to the January 12, 2013 shooting deaths of Matthew Lee, Ucliffe Dyer, and Mark Allen. The fatalities occurred during an alleged armed confrontation with police on Acadia Drive in Barbican, St. Andrew. Corporal Fullerton additionally faces charges of providing false statements to INDECOM during the investigation.