The Privy Council in London heard Vybz Kartel's appeal of his murder conviction for the 2014 killing of Clive "Lizard" Williams, overturning the ruling against the Jamaican dancehall artist.
The 48-year-old was given a life sentence for the murder of Williams on the Caribbean island. The Privy Council argued that a juror in the case was accused of trying to bribe others and should have been thrown out of the trial.
Vybz Kartel's Murder Conviction Overturned
Jamaican authorities will now decide whether or not Kartel's case should be retired. The musician, whose real name is Adidja Palmer, is considered to be one of the country's most popular artists and has collaborated with various performers, including Jay-Z and Rihanna.
Kartel's 64-day trial was one of the longest in the history of Jamaica and ended with the artist being ordered to serve a minimum of 35 years in prison. Later on, his sentence was reduced to 32 and a half years.
The trial heard that the victim, Williams, and another man, Lamar Chow, were given two unlicensed firearms that belonged to Kartel for safekeeping. However, when the two men failed to return them at an agreed time, prosecutors argued that they were summoned to the artist's house in August 2011, according to BBC.
At the time, Chow said that he and Williams were attacked and that the last thing he saw was Williams lying motionless on the ground and he was never seen alive after that. A few days after that encounter, the house burned down and the body was never recovered.
Kartel, alongside his co-accused Shawn Campbell, Kahira Jones, and Adre St. John, maintained their innocence since the original trial. The defendants' appeal hearing last month before the Privy Council was their last chance to reverse the guilty verdict against them.
The Privy Council in London serves as the highest court of appeal in Jamaica and other Commonwealth countries. A panel of justices, in delivering the council's ruling, said that one of the jurors who was accused of attempting to bribe fellow jury members was not removed from the trial.
Juror's Attempt To Bribe Others
The judge in the case let that particular juror on the case and even had them have a say in the final verdicts. The council said that allowing the juror to stay was "fatal to the safety of the convictions which followed" and was an "infringement of the [defendants'] fundamental right to a fair hearing," said the New York Times.
The news of the overturning of Kartel's conviction quickly spread through his Waterford community in Portmore, St. Catherine. His supporters were jubilant and gathered around television sets and radios at around 11:00 a.m. to listen as the Law Lords presented their ruling.
Supporters in the area of Waterford known as "Gaza" erupted into deafening cheers and applause after hearing the favorable decision for their idol. John Paul, who is popularly known as Gaza Legend, said they were very pleased that the council ruled in support of Kartel.
He then said that after the revelations, he had less trust in the Jamaican justice system because of the handling of the case with a corrupt juror. Paul said that he was very happy with the UK system, noting that it should stay in place without any changes, according to the Jamaica Gleaner.
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