Deaf man slaps woman for refusing him sex

A deaf man who reportedly hit a deaf woman in her face with a piece of board for refusing to have sex with him, got off with a stern warning when he appeared in the St James Parish Court on Wednesday.

Chester Smith, of a Montego Bay address, appeared before the court on a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm. Both he and the complainant appeared in court with sign language interpreters. The court was told that on March 7, at 11 p.m., the complainant was at a bar along Union Street in Montego Bay when Smith approached her and asked her for sex. However, the woman rejected his request. Following the rejection, Smith reportedly took a piece of board and hit the complainant in the face, injuring her right eye, which became swollen.

After the allegations were outlined, presiding Parish Judge Natiesha Fairclough-Hylton was informed that both parties had previously undergone a successful mediation session, with Smith paying $50,000 to the complainant, as per the terms of their mediation agreement. While making a no-evidence motion to dismiss the matter, Judge Fairclough-Hylton admonished Smith, telling him to stay out of further trouble.

"Mr Smith, I don't know what took place on that day, I was not there. However, this offence for which you have been charged carries a maximum term of up to three years, meaning that if you were tried and found guilty, I could have sent you to prison for up to three years," she said.

"In this case, mediation was successful. But I am warning you Mr Smith, that if you commit another offence and you are tried and you appear back before me, it will not go like this. You are to maintain the peace, do you understand me?" added Judge Fairclough-Hylton,

"Yes, Your Honour," Smith replied through his interpreter, before being discharged and allowed to leave the courtroom.