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Nearly three and a half years after a coroner’s jury ruled 31-year-old Azario Major was unlawfully killed by law enforcement, three police officers charged in his death will face a judge-only trial starting September 14. The high-profile case, which has already been marred by repeated delays and public outcry, took another procedural turn this week as Justice Guillimina Archer-Minns formally set the new trial date for Sergeant Antonio Sweeting (badge number 2825), Sergeant Jamal Johnson (badge number 3039), and Sergeant Deangelo Rolle (badge number 3726). The trial was originally slated to kick off last week, but it was rescheduled to accommodate the defense’s long-held request for a bench trial, rather than one decided by a jury.

The fatal incident dates back to December 26, 2021, when Major was shot and killed inside his vehicle parked outside a local bar on Fire Trail Road. Since that day, Major’s family has waged a sustained public campaign for accountability, repeatedly speaking out against lengthy procedural delays and emphasizing that they have yet to see justice delivered for their loved one more than three years after his death.

Defense counsel Keevon Maynard argued on behalf of the three officers that a trial overseen solely by a judge would deliver a fairer outcome for his clients. Maynard explained that a judge would center the proceedings strictly on applicable law and verified evidence, insulating the decision from the widespread public attention and emotional pressure that have surrounded the case since the shooting. This request builds on prior legal challenges to the original Coroner’s Court inquest process. During that inquest, the officers contended that the intense saturation of media and public commentary around Major’s death created unfair prejudice that biased the jury toward its unlawful killing finding.

That challenge to the coroner’s verdict ultimately reached Justice Franklyn Williams, who issued a ruling on the matter in March 2024. Justice Williams declined to throw out the Coroner’s Court’s original finding, but he acknowledged that the widespread public discourse around the case—including organized social media campaigns, news commentary, media interviews, a dedicated advocacy website, and a podcast focused on Major’s death—created significant public pressure. Multiple voices in these spaces repeatedly called for the immediate indictment of the three officers, which Justice Williams noted could have impacted the jury’s final decision. Even so, the justice ruled that the challenge to the verdict was not properly framed for the application brought by the defense. He also rejected a separate complaint that the Coroner’s Court mishandled a constitutional challenge the officers filed during the inquest, noting that the officers had failed to exhaust all available legal remedies before bringing their request to set aside the verdict.

A heated political clash has erupted in The Bahamas’ House of Assembly after Speaker Patricia Deveaux rejected opposition efforts to table court documents connected to damning U.S. federal drug trafficking allegations targeting an anonymous Bahamian politician, dismissing the claims as baseless, malicious gossip amid accusations the governing party is covering up a scandal that threatens the nation’s legislative integrity. The confrontation unfolded mid-budget debate, when Opposition Leader Michael Pintard pressed the governing administration to break its silence on explosive allegations included in a U.S. court filing that references only the unidentified figure as “Politician One.”

Per the filing, this unnamed Bahamian politician held a meeting inside the Parliament building in October 2024 with an undercover Drug Enforcement Administration source and a drug pilot to negotiate a $30 million cocaine shipment. The politician in question is the same unindicted co-conspirator referenced in a November 2024 indictment handed down by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, a leading federal jurisdiction renowned for prosecuting high-profile transnational narcotics trafficking, organized crime, and public corruption cases.

Pintard argued that the gravity of the allegations made parliamentary action unavoidable, noting the claims threaten not just the reputation of the legislative body, but the international standing of The Bahamas as a whole. “Something of that magnitude that could affect the reputation, not just of the Parliament, but by extension the country, it warranted a discussion, it warranted at least a statement,” Pintard said. “The fact that it hasn’t been done has moved us now to raise that question, at what point will a matter of that magnitude be addressed?”

Foreign Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell pushed back against the opposition’s push to raise the matter on the parliamentary floor, arguing the chamber is not the appropriate venue to address unproven criminal claims. He pointed to a recent protest by opposition Free National Movement members who wore name tags reading “I’m not Politician One,” dismissing the stunt as a political stunt based on an unvetted document originating from a foreign court. “It is untested. It is prejudicial, and it holds no place in this Parliament,” Mitchell said. “And if you want to engage in public gossip, that’s your business.”

Speaker Deveaux, who represents the Bamboo Town constituency, ultimately ruled against allowing the documents to be tabled, drawing a clear distinction between Parliament’s core lawmaking mandate and the investigatory role of law enforcement agencies. She emphasized that the House exists to debate and pass legislation that improves the lives of Bahamian citizens, and that any unproven criminal allegations should be forwarded directly to police for investigation rather than discussed in the legislative chamber.

“Here is where we debate, and we pass legislations and laws for the betterment of people,” Deveaux said. “I have Bamboo Town to care for, okay, and while I care about what goes on in the country, I am not allowing frivolous gossip or malicious gossip that they said happened in the Parliament. Of course, I care if it happened in the Parliament, but where are the facts? Where’s the truth behind it?” Deveaux instructed opposition members to submit any evidence they hold to national police, and only revisit the matter in Parliament once the law enforcement process has concluded.

Unlike many unremarkable legal filings, these allegations come in one of the U.S.’s most high-profile federal court districts, whose prosecutors regularly handle transnational criminal cases of national importance. While an indictment itself does not constitute proof of guilt, data from the federal judiciary shows that acquittals in U.S. federal criminal cases are extremely rare: Pew Research Center analysis found that fewer than 1% of defendants in federal criminal cases were acquitted at trial in fiscal year 2022, with the vast majority of cases resulting in convictions through guilty pleas.

Deveaux reaffirmed that she would revisit the matter if concrete evidence is brought forward, but refused to entertain unsubstantiated speculation in the House, adding that her priority remains advancing policy that serves Bahamian residents. In a lighthearted jab amid the tense exchange, she also pushed back against any implicit speculation that she could be the unnamed politician in question. “So my thing about who’s MP-one, well, if y’all didn’t know, I carry the name MP-one on my plate, so I’m not politician one but I am MP-one so I hope y’all ain’t talking about me,” Deveaux said. “So, if y’all have any information that we can put to rest this gossip, take it to Central Police Station, or we will have you escorted, and you could sit with the Commissioner of Police.”

A firestorm of public and political backlash has swept The Bahamas after Correctional Services Commissioner Doan Cleare made inflammatory remarks revealing a deliberate double standard for male and female recruits, prompting a rare public rebuke from the country’s National Security Minister and growing demands for his resignation.

The controversy ignited this week during a signing-on ceremony for the department’s new 81-person Squad A recruit cohort. Speaking to the incoming class, Cleare told new female trainees that a single misstep would result in immediate termination. In contrast, he noted that he would attempt to “massage” underperforming male recruits into compliance, justifying the softer approach by citing a widespread shortage of qualified male applicants for correctional roles. He also added that the department had adjusted its planned recruit gender ratio from an original 70 men/30 women split to 60 men/40 women after external pressure, framing the change as an unwanted concession.

News of the comments spread rapidly, drawing swift condemnation from across the political spectrum and women’s advocacy groups. By Thursday, National Security Minister Myles LaRoda delivered an extraordinary public reprimand of Cleare, a senior public official under his portfolio, during a sitting of the House of Assembly. LaRoda confirmed he had summoned Cleare to his office immediately after learning of the discriminatory remarks, and that Cleare had since sent a written apology to both the permanent secretary of the department and the minister himself.

Cleare has defended his comments by claiming they were made in jest during a casual interaction with recruits, but that explanation has done little to defuse tensions. LaRoda made clear that the commissioner’s position carries inherent public weight, and even offhand remarks that endorse gendered treatment have no place in Bahamian public institutions. “We strongly disagree with those words that was used and that there’s no place in our country where a leader could feel comfortable in saying that females, in particular, would be treated differently from males, especially when it comes to institutions that have been dominated by males,” LaRoda told parliament.

LaRoda also pushed back against the idea that gendered double standards are acceptable in modern Bahamian governance, pointing to the growing number of women holding senior leadership positions across the country’s public sector. He noted that every female government Member of Parliament holds a full Cabinet post, the Speaker of the House is a woman, the Royal Bahamas Police Force is led by a female commissioner, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force counts a woman as its deputy commodore, and Cleare’s own department has three female assistant commissioners.

Political leaders have echoed the minister’s condemnation, with many going further to call for formal investigation and leadership change. Killarney MP Michela Barnett-Ellis described the comments as “deeply concerning”, and called on LaRoda to launch an inquiry into whether the commissioner’s stated double standard is already reflected in existing discipline and termination practices across the prison system. Barnett-Ellis emphasized that Bahamian employment law, specifically Section 6 of the Employment Act, explicitly bans gender discrimination, requiring all employment decisions to be rooted in conduct, competence and performance rather than gender. She rejected the core logic of Cleare’s approach, arguing that women should not face harsher standards simply because more women apply, and men should not get special treatment just because fewer qualified men apply.

Former Opposition Leader Loretta Butler-Turner said she was “appalled” by the comments, and warned that the remarks contradict decades of progress toward gender equality in The Bahamas. “In 2026, Bahamian women should not be told they are held to a harsher standard than their male counterparts,” she said. “Our suffragettes fought generations for equality, and the laws of our Bahamas guarantee equality for all citizens in the workplace. There must be one standard of discipline, one standard of accountability, and one standard of opportunity.” She added that the comments are far more than a minor misstep, calling them a direct affront to the legacy of Bahamian women’s rights activists, and demanded that Cleare immediately retract the statements or face formal action.

Women United, a prominent Bahamian women’s advocacy organization, joined the call for Cleare’s resignation, with president and former senator Lisa Bostwick-Dean leading the charge. Bostwick-Dean acknowledged that Cleare’s underlying concern about declining numbers of qualified men entering law enforcement, nursing, education and trade fields is a valid issue to discuss, but argued that his framing and proposed policy response was inappropriate, discriminatory and demeaning. “Given that he has publicly declared that he will apply a different — more forgiving — standard to male recruits while reserving a zero-tolerance approach for women, he has demonstrated that he can no longer lead a mixed-gender squad with impartiality,” Bostwick-Dean said. She noted that Cleare’s open admission of intent to discriminate not only destroys trust and lowers morale among the women already serving in the department, but also exposes the entire Department of Corrections to major legal risk from wrongful termination claims. Alongside calling for his resignation, Women United is demanding a full independent investigation into the department’s recruitment policies and practices.

Women’s rights activist Alicia Wallace added that the comments risk undermining ongoing efforts to expand opportunities for women in traditionally male-dominated public sectors. She suggested that rather than doubling down on the comments, Cleare should openly explain the root of his concerns about gender balance in recruitment, so that policymakers and stakeholders can work to address the issue systematically without resorting to discriminatory policies.

Moving forward, LaRoda confirmed that the permanent secretary of the National Security Ministry will meet with Cleare this week to discuss the controversy in depth, and that the minister will join those talks to ensure all public concerns about gender discrimination are fully examined.