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Shane Jones, charged with manslaughter for the death of Edwin Usher, was found guilty today by Justice Nigel Pilgrim. Justice Pilgrim has ordered a social inquiry report, a prison report and a victim impact assessment statement to be provided by the Crown.
Jones, who was on bail, was remanded into custody today until January 29, 2025, for a mitigation and sentence hearing.
The incident occurred on November 23, 2019, on Vernon Street. Video footage, which was crucial to the Crown's case, showed that it was Jones who initiated the altercation with Usher by throwing a punch. Usher was seen lying on the pavement motionless, while Jones punched him 8 times in the head and stomped on his head. Jones and Usher were easily identified in two of the three video footage.
Usher died on November 30, 2019, while undergoing treatment at Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital. Pathologist Dr Mario Estradabran testified that Usher died from bleeding in his brain caused by blunt trauma.
In delivering his verdict, Justice Pilgrim said the court found that the cause of death was not medical negligence and that Jones had used excessive and unreasonable force. Jones gave a statement from the dock in which claimed that he acted in self defense. He said that a lady sent him to buy at a shop on Vernon Street and he dropped the money and two men who were behind him picked up the money. He said when he confronted them, one of them threatened to have his brother kill him and that was when the altercation ensued. But the video footage had no sound and there was no evidence that a threat was made.
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