Residents fight over community pipe

Four people were discharged of criminal proceedings against them on Monday, following allegations that they ganged up on and beat a 17-year-old over the use of a community pipe.

"Don't feel like unnu 'buss the case' and that unnu go brag say unnu beat up girl. The complainant explained that the pipe was the source of the conflict and that she wanted the matter to end," Senior Parish Judge Sanchia Burrell said. Her comments were directed at Natasha Green, Shanika Francis, Sheldon Morgan and Kerry-Ann Wilson who were admonished and discharged from the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court.

Green, Morgan and Wilson were slapped with assault occasioning actual bodily harm charges, while Francis faced charges of unlawful wounding and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. It was shared that on August 16, the complainant was at her mother's stall when she was attacked by Francis.

"Just so? What is the cause of it? She just get up and attack her just like that? There must have been a reason. Don't say it [the allegations] like that because it make the person sound like dem mad," Burrell indicated to the prosecutor.

"Your Honour, I don't know how I [end] up here. I was at work when I get a call that police going [to] charge me," Green informed the judge.

"Your Honour, I came downstairs and saw Francis and tell her to stop," Wilson added as an explanation, which was also proffered by Morgan. But the complainant's mother clarified the cause of the melee, explaining that she has a standpipe by her home that is utilised by the community.

"Your Honour, I don't know why me and dem stop talk, but it coming from that. I have no problem with them using the pipe, but when the pipe on, it run down the road and wet up my stall. All me a ask is that them turn off the pipe good when dem done use it," the complainant's mother said.

"That sounds fair enough, especially since you all are not paying for the water. So we not going to use the pipe again and mess up the place?"

"No Your Honour," the defendants replied. Green, Francis, Morgan and Wilson were subsequently discharged from the court, after they agreed to keep the peace.