Another coalition supporter charged with illegal procession

May 15, 2021 News

Four APNU+AFC supporters who were charged.

Opposition Chief Whip, Christopher Jones.

Opposition Member of Parliament, Annette Ferguson.

Kaieteur News – Gary Morris, an A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) supporter, was yesterday jointly charged with Opposition Chief Whip, Christopher Jones; Opposition Member of Parliament, Annette Ferguson, and several other coalition supporters for an illegal procession. The other charged supporters are; Mark Griffith, Malcolm Billison, Travis Ellis, Gordon Lucas and George Halley.
The matter was first called on Friday May 7, 2021, in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts before Senior Magistrate, Leron Daly, but Morris and Billison failed to appear in court. The Magistrate had issued summons for the absentees and adjourned the matter to yesterday’s date – however, Billison still failed to make a court appearance.
The charges stem from a march outside of the High Court in Georgetown last month following the ruling on the elections petition case by Chief Justice (Ag) Roxane George-Wiltshire.
The first joint charge alleges that Jones and Ferguson along with the six coalition supporters on April 26, 2021, at Georgetown, illegally engaged in a procession without permission from the Commissioner of Police.
The defendants were charged under Section 12 of the Public Order Act. Section 12, which stipulates, “Any person who holds, organises, forms, speaks at or takes part in any public meeting or public procession at which a noisy instrument is used without the permission of the Chief Officer of Police shall be guilty of an offence.” The law further outlines that anyone found guilty could face a fine of $26,000 and be imprisoned for up to four months.
On the previous hearing of the matter, Jones, Ferguson, Griffith, Ellis, Lucas and Halley denied the charge and were placed on $20,000 bail each. Morris was yesterday placed on self-bail after he denied the charge and the matter was adjourned to June 4, 2021.
Additionally, Ferguson was slapped with an individual charge, which alleged that on April 26, 2021, she obstructed a peace officer from conducting his duties. She pleaded not guilty and was placed on $10,000 bail for that offence.