A calm Reneto Adams (centre) is surrounded by supporters outside the Supreme Court after he and two other policemen charged with murder in the Kraal trial were acquitted on Tuesday. - RUDOLPH BROWN
A PERSON WHO is charged with a criminal offence has three options in law when they are to give their defence.
They can say nothing in their defence, they can give a statement from the dock which is called an unsworn statement, or they can go into the witness box and give their defence on oath and will then be subject to cross-examination.
Senior Superintendent Reneto Adams and the other two policemen charged with the murder of two women and two men at Kraal, Clarendon, on May 7, 2003, chose to give unsworn statements. The other three policemen, who were charged jointly with them were freed last week Monday, after Chief Justice Lensley Wolfe upheld no case submissions that there was no case against them.
The implicated policemen told the jury that they went to Kraal, Clarendon to apprehend Bashington Douglas otherwise called 'Chen Chen' and 'Shortman', for whom they had warrants for murder and shooting with intent. They said Douglas was also wanted for extortion and they had information that there were plans to kidnap two white men at the gold mine which was near to Kraal.
The policemen said when they went to the house, Douglas was there and he had a firearm and they also saw another man with a gun. They shouted police and they were fired on and they returned the fire.
Chief Justice Lensley Wolfe told the jurors that the onus was on the prosecution to prove the case against the policemen. He said the fact that they did not go into the witness box "is not something you can use to say they are guilty". He told the jurors that the men exercised the right given to them under the law.
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