Guilty verdict handed down to Jeffrey Daniel in historic judge- alone murder trial

The man who faced the court in Antigua and Barbuda’s landmark
judge-alone trial has been convicted of murder.
On Wednesday, November 29, Jeffrey Daniel, 29, was found guilty of
the 2021 murder of 56-year-old Robinson “David” Roberts of
Newfield.

After exactly one month of hearing evidence from several
prosecution witnesses – as well as a no-case submission from
Daniel’s lawyer, Wendel Alexander – and having reviewed all the
facts, High Court Justice Tunde Bakre decided that Daniel was guilty
of committing the capital offence.
 

Daniel will be sentenced on January 16, 2024.
The maximum sentence for murder in Antigua and Barbuda is life.
But several factors could contribute to the convicted man receiving a
less-harsh penalty, including his previous good character and
whether he has had previous convictions, among others.  
 
Daniel, a resident of Cassada Gardens, was accused and charged for
killing Roberts at his Newfield home on May 21, 2021.
 
Reportedly, there had been an altercation between Roberts and
Daniel, who had gone to the home of the deceased in search of his
ex-girlfriend, who was Roberts’ stepdaughter.

Later, Roberts’ lifeless body was found down the road from his
residence, near his garage, with visible injuries. He was pronounced
dead at 9:05 a.m. that same day. 
 
Based on evidence from the pathologist, the victim had succumbed
to severe blood loss from a laceration to his chest.
 
In an earlier appearance in the lower court, Alexander had asserted
that his client had also suffered injuries to the body, including his
forehead, fingers, back, and chest during the altercation.
 
Trials by a judge alone came about during the peak of the COVID-19
pandemic, when social-distancing protocols contributed to a backlog
of cases in the High Court.
 
It falls under the Criminal Proceedings Act (Trial by Judge Alone),
enacted in 2021, and was expected to be a piece of sunset
legislation. However, it became permanent several months ago.
Murder is one of the offences which can be tried under the Act.