A deposition by a witness, which outlined how bail for Mario Deane was delayed after he made uncomplimentary remarks about the police, was heard in the Westmoreland Circuit Court yesterday.
The three accused, Corporal Elaine Stewart and constables Juliana Clevon and Marlon Grant, are facing charges of manslaughter, perverting the course of justice, and misconduct in a public office.
The deposition by the now-deceased Castel McKenzie recounted what he stated to be the events surrounding Mario Deane’s detention and the subsequent injuries he observed.
McKenzie stated that on Sunday, August 3, 2014, while at work, he received a call from Deane. In response, he obtained a bail bond and took it to the Barnett Street Police Station. Upon arrival, he handed the document along with a photograph to Corporal Stewart, who then summoned Deane.
At that point, Deane appeared to be in normal condition. However, according to McKenzie, Corporal Stewart remarked that Deane did not even know his own address, to which Deane responded that the information was recorded in the station diary. Deane reportedly then expressed his distrust of the police, prompting McKenzie to signal him to remain quiet. The deposition read to the seven-member panel of jurors stated that Stewart returned the bail documents and instructed McKenzie to return at 5:00 p.m.
But McKenzie said upon his return to the police station at 3 pm he was informed that Deane had been beaten by prisoners.
Later, when McKenzie went to the Cornwall Regional Hospital, he saw Deane lying on a bed, looking completely different from before. He noticed blood coming from Deane’s ears and nose, a neck brace that was not previously there, and what appeared to be a stab wound on his left shoulder, resembling a puncture from a pen. McKenzie also observed severe swellings and bruising on Deane’s face and chest, leading him to believe that Deane had been brutally beaten.
Deane, 31, was beaten while in custody at the Barnett Street Police Station lockup in Montego Bay, St James on August 3, 2014, for possession of a ganja ‘spliff’, and died three days later at the Cornwall Regional Hospital (CRH) in Montego Bay.
