Photo: Ervin Reneau
by Roy Davis (freelance reporter)
BELIZE CITY, Thurs. Nov. 9, 2023
An appeal of the convictions of Ervin Reneau, 51, who was found guilty of 2 counts of murder in connection with a fatal Texaco gas station shooting in 2010, has been dismissed by the Belize Court of Appeal. Reneau’s convictions were affirmed.
But the appeal of his sentences, which were two life imprisonment sentences to run concurrently, was allowed, and he is to be resentenced by a judge of the High Court. This is in accordance with the decision by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) that persons convicted of murder must not only be given life sentences, but be given a fixed time to spend behind bars, after which they would be eligible for parole. In addition to that, the Belize Court of Appeal granted a declaration that Reneau’s right to a fair trial within a reasonable time was breached by a delay in his trial, which was not held until 2016, over 5 years after he had been placed on remand. The remedy for that delay is a reduction of his sentence, the length of which is to be determined by a judge of the High Court.
The incident for which Reneau was convicted occurred on November 30, 2010, at the Texaco gas station, located on the Philip Goldson Highway. Two men, security guard Edgar Ayala and David Longworth, a customer at the gas station who was travelling with his wife and child, were fatally shot by Reneau. Reneau was charged with their murder on December 1, 2010, the day following the shooting. He was indicted on 2 counts of murder on January 8, 2012, and was found guilty of both counts in a judge-alone trial which began on February 16, 2016, and concluded on June 6, 2016.
Reneau’s appeal was on several grounds that were whittled down to two: his constitutional right to a fair trial within a reasonable time was breached; and the sentence he received is excessive in light of the decision of the CCJ in Gregory August v R.
Reneau was represented at the appeal hearing by attorney Peta-Gay Bradley, while the respondent was represented by the Director of Public Prosecution, Cheryl Lynn Vidal.