Please Register / Login to take part in discussions about the Virgin Islands.
http://www.onepaper.com/stthomasvi/?v=d&i=&s=News:Local&p=1176614212
Clicked to read linked article about third suspect and found this ...
....
During a pre-trial detention hearing on St. Thomas, Kendall also did not accept the prosecution's $500,000 bail recommendation, calling the figure "too excessive." Instead Kendall set a bail of $75,000, but said Thomas only had to post 10 percent -- or $7,500 -- before he could be released.
Once bail is posted, Thomas will be released into the custody of his uncle, but will wear an electronic monitoring device and remain under house arrest, the judge added. Having already found the 18 year old to be a flight risk, Kendall said Thomas is currently not eligible to be released on his own recognizance or an unsecured bond.
Kendall further explained that prosecuting attorney Renee Gumbs Carty had "failed" during Thursday's hearing to present "convincing evidence" that Thomas had committed the murder. Reiterating statements made by defense attorney Harold Willocks, he added that witnesses interviewed after the incident had not actually seen Thomas kill Cockayne, who died as a result of multiple stab wounds to the body.
"This is a case of circumstantial evidence," Kendall said. "And the court cannot find that the government has proven ... that the defendant committed the offense for which he has been charged. There has been no testimony indicating that anyone saw the defendant with a knife."
Read it all!
More straw men.
I'm taking a break from here. Trolls are coming out.
There are more VI residents and former VI residents speaking out in my local media than before. It is good to hear everyone's view of what has been going on - and it doesn't sound like the defensive approach, either. I'm not going to get into what we're hearing now....since anyone else can search and find the same info - but it is may mean that there are more witnesses coming forward now - and others who have been threatened.
Anyone who thinks these discussions and the media frenzy are going to make it hard to find an unbiased jury should really spend time living on a small island. Finding an unbiased jury is an old problem.
My contribution to the justice in this case is that I'm not going to return to the VI until the court's decision is rendered. It's the only personal contribution I think I can make. It's just my way of noticing and acknowledging.
I wish all of this will stop. The name calling, the surmising. Trying the case on the boards, just like doing in in the media. not all the info is out there. Let it rest. This is a travel message board. There are four active threads on the same subject.
Thank you.
RL
I certainly agree. A wave of weirdness has certainly rolled through here. Actually there are only a few posters who are engaging in it---putting up multiple, lengthy posts. We're all entitled to our opinions, but there's probably a time when it's best to keep our opinions to ourselves.
There were earlier complaints about the TA board not permitting that thread to continue. i certainly see why they may choose to operate that waay.
