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Timehri woman found guilty on narcotics charge, mother freed

Dec 10, 2015 Court Stories, Features / Columnists, News

After 10 months of trial, Magistrate Leron Daly found a Timehri woman guilty of trafficking in narcotics and remanded her to prison. Attorney Nigel Hughes had requested that his client be sentenced below the minimum penalty for the offence.
The woman, Tanunza Solomon, of Timehri Dock Area, East Bank Demerara was convicted yesterday for having 10 grams of cocaine in her possession for the purpose of trafficking. She was busted with the drug on October 14, 2013, at Timehri.
After hearing the Magistrate’s decision, Attorney Hughes made his request. According to Hughes, any attempt by a Magistrate to impose a mandatory minimum sentence without exercising her independent discretion would be unconstitutional.
The lawyer argued that the required minimum sentencing for this offence is unconstitutional and referred to Article 153 of the Constitution of the Republic of Guyana.
Hughes said that under this Article, the Magistrate has no jurisdiction to determine constitutional matters. In this regard, he requested that the matter be referred to the High Court, which has the jurisdiction to handle the matter.
In addition, the lawyer asked that a probation report be prepared for his client. This was approved by the Magistrate.  Thereafter, the Magistrate informed Tanunza Solomon that they were some legal challenges preventing her from imposing a sentence on her for the offence.
She was remanded to prison and ordered to return to court tomorrow, when a decision is expected to be made.
Solomon’s mother, Margo Solomon, was also slapped with the same charge. However, when the matter came up yesterday, the Magistrate informed the court that there was not sufficient evidence to tie the older Solomon to the crime. She informed the court that she found the woman not guilty and dismissed the charge against her in the Providence Magistrate’s Court.
A total of four witnesses testified on behalf of the prosecution, led by Police Inspector Michael Grant.
In delivering her decision to Tanunza Solomon, Magistrate Daly said that she believed the case of the prosecution and pointed to the fact that none of its witnesses were discredited.
According to court facts, on the day in question, the police acting on information, went to the home of the two, at Timehri. Upon arrival at the premises, the police contacted Margo Solomon, who was seated in the verandah. The woman was informed of the reason for the lawmen’s presence and called out to her daughter, who was inside the home.
When the police entered the home, they saw Tanunza Solomon running from east to west with something inside her hand. The police pursued the woman and relived her of a transparent bag containing the illicit substance.
Margo Solomon and her daughter were told of the offence, cautioned and taken to the Timehri Police Station, where the charge was instituted.
They had initially pleaded not guilty to the charge and were granted bail by the High Court.

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