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Child rapist approaches Appeal Court to repeal life sentences
Kaieteur News – Three years after he was handed life sentences for raping two girls on three different occasions, rape convict, Sheldon Lynch has approached the Court of Appeal seeking to have his conviction and sentence overturned. The Appeal Court is scheduled to determine the appeal this week.
Rape Convict, Sheldon Lynch
Lynch in his notice of Appeal said among other things that the judges who conducted his trials erred and misdirected the jury on the law and elements of sexual conduct.
He is arguing, among other things, that the trial Judge misdirected the jury, and that the imposed jail terms are excessive.
His contention is that the judges failed to adequately direct the jury on the law and requirement of the danger of relying on the unsworn testimony of a child. Lynch was convicted of engaging in sexual penetration of two underage girls in 2018. The man whose last known address was given as Plaisance, East Coast Demerara, was convicted by a 12-member jury of engaging in sexual penetration of an 11-year-old girl on August 22, 2015, and was imprisoned for life, without the possibility of parole.
It was reported that on the day in question, Lynch, known to the child, had forced himself on the then 11-year-old. Following the incident, the girl told her mother what had transpired, and the mother reported the matter to the Police. Thus, Lynch was arrested and later charged.
In a separate matter in 2018, Lynch was found guilty of raping a 10-year-old girl on two different occasions between December 2010 and November 2011. He was sentenced to two consecutive life terms, and must spend a minimum of 35 years in prison on each of the two convictions, before being paroled.
In handing down the sentences following the trial for the 10 year old victim, the trial judge Simone Ramlall took into consideration the nature of the offences and the circumstances under which they were committed. From the victim’s evidence, the judge told Lynch that the young girl trusted him and was also very fond of him. However, the judge said to Lynch that he treated the underage girl like his “woman”. “You violated her trust and took her innocence. You have scarred her for life,” Justice Ramlall said to Lynch, adding that, he showed no remorse for his actions. The judge continued, “You (Lynch) have not acknowledged that you were found guilty by the jury. You demonstrated no regard for the verdict.”
Lynch has however maintained he is innocent of both crimes and hopes that the court will grant his appeal to have the conviction and life sentences overturned.
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