Denvoy Domingo, 28, a resident of Mayflower Street charged with the murder of Jermaine Smart, 27, A.K.A. “Jerry,” was acquitted of the charge today in the court of Justice Herbert Lord.
The prosecution, represented by Crown Counsel Tuemia Young, closed its case after it called three witnesses. They were Jeruis Valencia, Joseph Panting and Kendis Flowers. None of them were able to provide any evidence for the August 2007 murder.
So at the close of the prosecution’s case, Domingo’s attorney, Dickie Bradley, submitted that there was no case for his client to answer. Bradley said the prosecution had not provided sufficient evidence and there were five elements to be proved for the charge of murder.
Bradley said that there was no evidence that Smart was dead because nobody has come to court and has testified that he or she witnessed a post mortem and certified the body as being that of Smart.
Bradley also said that there was no evidence that Smart died from harm and the harm was unlawful, and that it was Domingo who caused the harm.
Crown Counsel Young did not reply to Bradley’s submissions.
Justice Lord then accepted the no case submission and he directed the jury of 5 men and 7 women to return a formal verdict of not guilty of murder and the alternative charge of manslaughter.
Smart, who resided in Fuller’s Alley was gunned down on August 29, 2007.
He was standing in front of a Chinese shop on Cemetery Road, near his house, when two persons rode by on bicycles and one of them fired several shots at him, fatally injuring him in the process.
Domingo spent almost 5 years in jail on remand.