by Linda Straker
- Assault and abusive language charges against Gilbert and Bowen thrown out
- Farrier failed to be present in the court and as a result, the magistrate threw out the matter
A magistrate in St George’s on Monday threw out the assault and abusive language charges against Oswald Gilbert and Fabian Bowen, the two men who allegedly committed the act against Calistra Farrier during the month of March.
The incident occurred during the height of the general elections campaign when the then National Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate for the Town of St George, Claudette Joseph, erected a swing in the open space of the Mt Gay Housing project without permission from authorities.
Management of the government property was called in and it was agreed that the construction was not in keeping with the required protocol. However, supporters of Joseph and supporters of the government began cursing each other.
Farrier, who is a journalist, took out her iPad tablet and began recording video. She was told to stop but instead of stopping she moved closer to one of the men in the fiasco and he knocked her device up into the air and it fell to the ground. She picked up her tablet and continued recording. All of this was captured on video by another media house.
Farrier, who filed the complaint against the men, failed to be present in the court and as a result, the magistrate threw out the matter. The prosecution told the magistrate they had no excuse from the complainant. She was in court when the matter was adjourned to 2 July.
The men who initially hired then-candidate Peter David as legal counsel, were on Monday represented by Arley Gill who has returned following 5 years as serving as a magistrate in Dominica.
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