It's been almost two months since Jasmine Hartin walked off a charge of manslaughter by negligence for the shooting death of superintendent Henry Jemmott. Since then, she's been nabbed trying to jump the border before paying the fine and locked up overnight at the Corozal police station. She's also been spotted at both the Belize and Mexico borders on her way out of the country.
But tonight, Hartin is once again in hot water with the courts, this time over a confidentiality breech made by her attorneys on her behalf. I found out more about the breach and its $15,000BZD sanction when I spoke to the attorney for the Jemmott's Leslie Mendez. Here's more:
The last time we saw Jasmine Hartin she was hightailing it out of the country on her way to Turks and Caicos, at least that's what she told the international press.
But there are still several matters she needs to settle her in Belize, one of them being a $15,000.00 fine for breaches of confidentiality in her civil matter with Jemmotts.
Cherisse Halsall:
"Explain why these statements made by her attorneys and not by her constitute a breech of confidentiality?"
Leslie Mendez, Jemmott Family Attorney
"Well, that was one of her answers to the application for sanctions because, um, this was made through her attorney, now your attorney is your agent so you are liable for the actions but more than that, what the court said and specifically why the sanctions were imposed is because even if it is that you had a reasonable expectation that your attorney would act in your best interest and would not breech your confidence, effectively what she said, or effectively her defense to the application was that I didn't do it, I said that in confidence and he was not authorized to then make these further disclosures so effectively she was charging or accusing her attorney in fact of breaching the code of ethics and really breeching attorney client privilege."
Cherisse Halsall:
"Leslie, Jasmine Hartin has left the country, she hasn't returned, to our knowledge anyway, and so I would ask, many might say isn't this just a grand waste of time though to be charging money making sanctions on a woman who may never return and wouldn't that go for the civil proceedings as well?"
Leslie Mendez, Jemmott Family Attorney
"Well, there are various ways in which you can enforce a judgement, and in fact a judgement that is handed down here in Belize can also be enforced outside, um, whether or not people consider it to be a huge waste of time, the family has a vested interest in seeing justice done and so we will do our very best. What I can say is that Jasmine did attend court yesterday, whatever enforcement we can have in terms of an eventual judgement we hope that, that is effective and we would hope that Ms. Hartin would comply with judgements of the court but we will see what happens until then."
But is there any way to enforce sanctions let alone civil judgements on a Canadian citizen who no longer resides in Belize? There may be:
Leslie Mendez, Jemmott Family Attorney
"Yeah there are some international treaties that facilitate that process. It's not an easy one but there is a process by which we can seek to enforce the judgement here outside of Belize."
Jasmine Hartin is due back in San Pedro for a cocaine possession court date on August 16th. She hasn't been seen in Belize since early June.
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