Restorative justice for cabbie on assault rap

A St James taxi operator has been ordered by the St James Parish Court to attend restorative justice sessions with a man who he allegedly slapped in the face and threatened with a machete.

Samuel Medley, 51, of a Flanker address, was before the court last Wednesday to answer to the charges of assault occasioning bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon, a ratchet knife.

He had his bail extended until June 6 on the assault charge, and he pleaded guilty to carrying the knife and was ordered to pay a $2,500 fine or spend 10 days in jail.

The complainant told Judge Sandria Wong-Small that Medley and another man came after him with a machete and stones on March 27, stemming from a dispute over an illegal electrical connection in 2014.

"Him (Medley) drive me down and take a machete and slap me, and his friend come with a stone, from March 27. Flanker is where the incident happened, because from 2014 I found illegal light and cut it off, and from then they've been firing slingshots after me," the complainant explained.

The court was also told that on a separate occasion, Medley threw a stone at the complainant and hit him on the shoulder. At that point Medley intervened, wanting to share his side of the story.

"Your Honour, you hear from him, you want to hear from me now?" Medley asked Wong-Small.

"No, sir, I don't want to hear anything, because he's not under a charge, but you are in the dock. You're going to be sent to restorative justice to see if you can resolve the matter," Wong-Small replied.