CHOKING INA JAMAICA COURTHOUSE

Woman takes back lover who squeezed her throat and tried to run her over

There was drama in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court court after a woman who had brought her lover before the parish judge for driving his car at her and squeezing her throat until she almost fainted, three weeks after she had broken off their relationship, revealed that the relationship had been reconciled.

Mario Parchment, 23, of Stephen Street in Kingston was arrested recently and charged with assault.

The court heard that on August 5, the complainant was on her way home, walking on George’s Street in Kingston when Parchment drove his car at her, forcing her to jump out of the way to avoid being hit.

The complainant, on reaching home, saw Parchment in her yard waiting on her. He then held onto to her and started squeezing her throat, causing her to almost pass out before neighbours came to her rescue.

But Parchment, before he admitted to his wrongs, initially denied driving his car at the complainant and choking her.

“I never drove to hit her down,” he said while pleading not guilty to the charge.

A September 13 date was then set for the matter to go to trial and Judge Maxine Ellis extended Parchment’s bail.

It was at that point, however, that the complainant told the court she and Parchment had talked about the issue and that he had apologised for all that he did, and thus she did not wish to pursue the matter.

“Didn’t you hear him say he wasn’t driving the car at you and choking you?” the judge then asked her.

But the complainant said, “No, I never hear.”

“He told me he never drove the car at you and he did not choke you so what did he apologise for?” Ellis asked.

Parchment then interjected and said: “I drive past her yard.”

The judge in reply quickly said to him: “Sir, please, nobody going charge you for driving past somebody’s yard.”

She then asked if he had apologised and he said yes, which prompted her to to ask why.

“The situation,” Parchment answered.

“The situation don’t have no details?” Judge Ellis asked.

Parchment then explained that based on the complainant’s statement in which she said that he fought her and swerved his car at her, he had apologised. He then told the judge that no one had intervened.

The frustrated complainant then shouted at him: “Talk the truth nuh.”

“You gone back to him now, ma’am?” the judge then asked to which she replied: “Yes.”’

Following enquiries from the judge she admitted that it was not the first time that she was being abused by Parchment.

The judge then warned her that Parchment needs to seek help before giving him a six-month sentence, suspended for two years.

“If you caa manage and the hand caa listen, go to a counsellor,” she said.

She, however, told him that the sentence is to serve as a reminder that he is not to put his hands again on the complainant, as six months in prison is awaiting him.

Man takes blame for robbing woman of expensive gold chain

A man who, along with another, robbed a woman of her gold chain valued at US$3,000 is to be sentenced on October 1.

Jahvaney Stewart, 22, of Beeston Street in Kingston pleaded guilty to robbery with aggravation when he appeared in court on Tuesday before Parish Judge Maxine Ellis.

The court heard that on August 7 the complainant was at the intersection of Barry Street and Church Street in downtown Kingston when Stewart and another man put her in fear and robbed her of her gold chain.

But Stewart denied that he was with another man when the robbery took place.

“I don’t know that other man,” he said.

“Is not two of you robbed the lady?” Judge Ellis asked

“No, miss,” Stewart responded.

The prosecutor then told the court that Stewart, when he was held by the police, on caution said: “A nuh me one.”

“But you come to you sense now and a you and you one, but you will see soon that I am street smart and I know how it works,” the judge said.

“Anyway, you didn’t waste my time and I need to decide how I am going to deal with you,” Ellis went on.

“I wanna see what I am going to do with you. Maybe you need a stretch in prison but either way, you going back to school,” Judge Ellis told the high school dropout who left in the ninth grade.

She then enquired from Stewart if he had enrolled in any other school after dropping out and he said he was in the Career Advancement Programme learning about computers.

But when the judge asked him to explain what exactly he was learning he struggled to respond before finally saying: “If you want to be clerk or how to have the proper work etiquette.”

Judge Ellis, who was not satisfied with Stewart’s response, asked him to tell her one thing that he learned and he said: “To write letters and build graphs and such and such.”

“Why can’t you all just learn to speak the truth? I am going to help you but just tell the truth, because all of what you just said is ‘cock and bull’ story,” she said before remanding him for sentencing.

Woman collects $140,000 for road licence then disappears

A woman who collected $140, 000 from a female car owner, claiming she could help her get a road licence but who then disappeared with the money, escaped spending the weekend in jail after she repaid the complainant in full.

Lorraine James, who was arrested at her Kingston home last Friday, pleaded guilty to obtaining money by false pretence when she appeared in court.

Her brother and sister-in-law who had accopmanied her then told the court that they had brought $50,000 and needed a further two weeks to complete the payment.

“We just get the money, pay it and done so she can go home to her kids, cuz a back to school and her kids are suffering,“ he said as his sister stood in the dock crying.

The judge then told them he would grant them the time but that James would remain in custody. The brother, however, wasn’t happy with his sister remaining in jail and enquired from the judge if the court could give him “an hour or so” to go and get the rest of the money.

Chief Parish Judge Chester Crooks then told him that the court was almost over and he could not wait on him but that he could set the matter for Monday, and the brother agreed.

James was then remanded in custody.

But 10 minutes later the brother and his girlfriend returned in court with the remaining $90,000, surprising the court.

The money was paid over to the complainant and the judge gave James a six-month suspended sentence.

Earlier, before the sentence was handed down, the complainant told the court that in January of this year James told her she could get the “procedures” done for her to get a road licence but that she would have to pay her $140,000.

The complainant said James’ boyfriend told her that James had two red-plate taxis on the road and so she was convinced that she could help her.

However, she said that after she paid the money to James and the four-week deadline had passed for her to deliver the road licence, James could not be found, hence the matter was reported.

The judge, however, asked the complainant why she did not go to the Transport Authority and try to get the licence for herself, but she said she was was told that none was available when she went.

“So you were trying to beat the system,” the judge said.

“Yes, Your Honour,” the complainant answered.

Chief Judge Crooks then told the complainant that the court really should not be helping her to get back her money as she knowingly agreed to try and get what she wanted through a “back door deal”.