No jury trial for Mavado’s son

The defence team for Dante Brooks, the teenage son of dancehall deejay Mavado, has opted to have a trial by a judge alone, as opposed to judge and jury.

Brooks' trial is set to appear in court on January 7, 2021, to answer to murder charges.

Jury trials in the island's courts have been suspended because of COVID-19 restrictions. However, Chief Justice Bryan Sykes recently said that the only trial that still needed a jury was a murder case in which the death penalty was an issue.

Sykes further stated that was a small percentage because 99 per cent of the cases can be tried by a judge alone.

Brooks' attorney, Peter Champagnie, QC, told THE STAR that the decision not to have a jury was not made lightly.

"This decision was arrived at, having taken into consideration a number of factors. Our client is confident that when all the evidence is heard, he will be vindicated," Champagnie stated.

Brooks, who is 18, will be tried as an adult. The teenager has been in detention since 2018. He has been spending time in a juvenile detention facility in Kingston, having had his bail applications denied multiple times.

In 2018, Brooks was charged jointly with 23-year-old Andre Hines for the June 5, 2018 murder of Lorenzo Thomas, otherwise called 'Israel' or 'Trulups', in Cassava Piece, St Andrew.

Both were charged with conspiracy to murder, arson, shooting with intent and illegal possession of firearm and ammunition.

Brooks has consistently denied the allegations in court.