3 Weeks ago, we told you about how the Pickwoad family and the Ministry of Natural Resources couldn't reach a pre-trial settlement on a disputed piece of land in Belama Phase 1.
As we've reported the Pickwoad family has disputed the manner in which the Lands Department terminated her lease and transferred rights to it over to Maud Williams and Mervin Castillo Jr. That case has been before the Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin, and today, Lands Commissioner Wilbert Vallejos was cross examined by attorney Audrey Matura-Shepherd.
The case was completed this morning, and outside of court, we spoke with Matura-Shepherd about the evidence revealed so far. Here's what she told us:
Audrey Matura-Shepherd, attorney for Pickwoad family
"We are at the end of trial and all evidence has been given. The last witness that had to be on the stand was Mr. Wilbert Vallejos and his witness statements stands as evidence and we just cross examine him, The focus of the cross examination clearly be did the person get notice and was the person given a reasonable time to respond and so we go back to court on December 17th to report and in the meantime yes, we are still encourage to try and reach settlement."
Reporter
"Talking about the processes, it seems to be a bit problematic to get that out of the commissioner. How do you feel about his response on that?"
Audrey Matura-Shepherd, attorney for Pickwoad family
"You know sometimes when you do these matters when you don't get the response, that itself, is a help because it shows you where you are with everything. It shows you and I think you all were listening to the evidence and understanding the process of the Lands Department, I think what you all need to look at is what are the polices at the Lands Department. Are they applied evenly across the board with everyone and that's beyond this case."
Daniel Ortiz
"What is the weight of Mr. Wilbert Vallejos' input into this case chief evidence and cross examination?"
Audrey Matura-Shepherd, attorney for Pickwoad family
"Well it carries a lot of weight because he is able speak as to the processes and he is a decision maker."
The case goes back before Chief Justice Benjamin for a report on December 17.
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