标签： Trinidad and Tobago

In a landmark employment ruling, the Trinidad and Tobago High Court has rejected a registered nurse’s legal challenge against the South-West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) regarding salary deductions following her extended medical absence. Justice Westmin James delivered the decisive verdict on January 26, affirming the health authority’s actions as both lawful and contractually justified.

The case centered on Nicolia McLean-Kelly, a nurse employed at San Fernando General Hospital since 2018, who contracted mycoplasma pneumonia while on duty in July 2020. Her condition deteriorated critically, requiring multiple weeks of hospitalization including three weeks in intensive care where she suffered cardiac arrests and underwent emergency lung surgery.

Despite the severity of her medical crisis, Justice James determined that SWRHA acted within its contractual rights when it reclassified portions of her sick leave as unpaid absence. The court found that McLean-Kelly had exhausted her contractual entitlement of 14 working days of paid sick leave per year by late July 2020. Subsequent payments made during her extended absence constituted overpayments that the authority was legally obligated to recover under the Exchequer and Audit Act.

The judge systematically dismissed the claimant’s arguments that the deductions were unlawful or unfair. He emphasized that the employment contract explicitly granted the employer discretion in determining whether extended sick leave should be paid, and that this discretion was exercised rationally and consistently with established HR policies. Justice James further noted that the contract expressly required employees to comply with applicable institutional policies, making it implausible that a senior nurse would be unaware of such regulations.

The court also addressed the timing of the deductions, acknowledging that medical certificates could only be issued upon hospitalization completion, which delayed the reclassification process. Once overpayments were identified, recovery became legally mandatory.

In addition to dismissing the claim for recovered salary totaling $63,482.08, the court rejected claims for gratuity losses ($13,917), aggravated and exemplary damages, and interest. Justice James ordered McLean-Kelly to pay the SWRHA’s prescribed costs of $19,479.80 (excluding VAT) while granting a 90-day stay of execution.

In a brazen daylight robbery, a dump truck operator fell victim to an armed assault at Port of Spain’s Beetham Landfill on January 25th. The incident occurred approximately at 1:20 pm as the driver was exiting the waste management facility.

According to law enforcement officials, four individuals of African descent confronted the victim while he operated his blue and red Nissan CK20 dump truck. The assailants executed a coordinated robbery, making away with multiple valuable possessions from the driver, who resides in La Paille Gardens, Caroni.

The stolen items include a premium grey Samsung S20 mobile device housed in a blue protective case, valued at approximately $2,000 TT dollars. The perpetrators additionally confiscated a black wallet containing $675 in cash and a First Citizens bank card, with the wallet itself appraised at $200. Notably, the thieves also took a black Adidas strap bag worth $60, which contained critical access items to the victim’s personal vehicle and residential property.

Law enforcement authorities have circulated detailed physical descriptions for three suspects involved in the criminal act. All individuals are described as having brown complexion and slim builds. The primary suspect stands approximately six feet tall with distinctive cane-row comb-back hairstyling and an elongated, clean-shaven facial structure. His attire consisted of a white vest paired with blue three-quarter length trousers.

A second accomplice matches similar height characteristics with conservatively cropped hair, last seen wearing a green T-shirt with blue three-quarter pants. The third identified individual presents significantly shorter at five feet three inches with rounded facial features and no visible facial hair. His clothing included a distinctive yellow and black padded jet ski vest complemented by brown three-quarter pants.

Criminal investigations remain actively ongoing as authorities pursue multiple investigative avenues to apprehend those responsible for this violent act against a essential service worker.

Former Trinidad and Tobago Police Commissioner Gary Griffith has issued a forceful demand for transparency regarding approximately 1,200 body-worn cameras acquired during his administration that remain unused. This call comes amid growing public outrage over a controversial police shooting in St. Augustine that resulted in the death of Joshua Samaroo and left his common-law wife Kaia Sealy paralyzed.

The incident, captured on CCTV footage that has since gone viral, shows Samaroo with his hands raised in what appears to be a surrender gesture moments before officers opened fire. This visual evidence directly contradicts the official police account that claimed officers were fired upon during the January 20th encounter.

Griffith emphasized that the body camera initiative was specifically designed to prevent such contentious situations. “Twelve hundred body cameras for 7,000 police officers is more than adequate,” he stated, explaining that his administration had established strict operational protocols requiring officers to activate cameras during all patrols, roadblocks, and operations. The system included accountability measures where officers signed for equipment and supervisors verified proper usage.

The former commissioner accused current Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro of deliberately ignoring standing orders mandating camera use. Griffith further questioned why multiple accountability measures implemented under his leadership—including tasers, pepper spray, online reporting systems, a police app, GPS vehicle tracking, and live feed cameras—had been discontinued.

In a concerning revelation, Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander disclosed to the Senate that a $24.9 million contract for 3,000 additional body cameras had been terminated to cut costs. Commissioner Guevarro later justified this decision by claiming the contract involved inflated prices, with cameras priced at $8,000 per unit compared to market rates of $2,500-$3,000.

The Police Complaints Authority has joined the call for body camera implementation, stating that such technology would “enhance accountability, transparency, and public confidence in policing.” Public trust in the police service has dramatically declined from 59% during Griffith’s tenure to just 8% according to recent surveys, highlighting the urgent need for reform.