Public reacts with both anger at the court and congratulations to lawyers following acquittal of four murder accused

Members of the public have been reacting – in most cases, angrily
–to the outcome of the Bruce Greenaway murder trial, from which
the four-law enforcement personnel charged walked free.

On Wednesday, June 21, the jury was instructed by High Court
Justice Colin Williams to return a formal “not guilty” verdict, after he
upheld no-case submissions made by the defence lawyers.

The judge, who quoted several authorities in arriving at his
decision, agreed that there was insufficient evidence to convict the
accused; agreed with the defence that no one had seen who killed
Greenaway; and that he had not been in the custody of the officers
for any significant time.

The decision was greeted with shouts of jubilation and praise from
the families of the accused – police officer Jason Modeste and
Defence Force soldiers Shakiel Thomas, Armal Warner and Aliyah
Martin.

However, some residents say that, once again, the outcome has
proven to be a sad day for Antigua and Barbuda, where many
persons already believe there is no justice and the judiciary is
compromised.

Noting that karma is usually “an odd thing,” one woman says the
persons accused must remember that there is a God who dispenses
curses even unto third and fourth generations.

Others are suggesting that some members of the judiciary might be
compromised, since, too often, the poor man is locked away, even
with no evidence presented against him.

One aggrieved man says he does not believe there was insufficient
evidence – and argues that circumstantial evidence is usually
stronger than direct evidence. And in cases of joint unlawful
enterprise, he insists that the prosecution does not need to show
who did the actual killing.

Joint enterprise is a common-law doctrine in which an individual
can be jointly convicted of a crime committed by another person – if
the court decides that one party foresaw that the other party was
likely to commit the crime.

However, other people are commending the defence lawyers on a
job well done, noting that these professionals are paid to find
loopholes.

The murdered man was last seen alive on Thursday, April 9, 2020, in
the custody of the four officers after he was picked up in Falmouth,
allegedly for breaking curfew while the country was in lockdown
during the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Greenaway’s decomposing body was found on April 13, 2020,
floating on the shoreline of Indian Creek. It bore the marks of a
severe beating and a post mortem examination later determined that
he had been strangled.