‘Why didn’t she open the grille?’
Judge questions witness’ description of Shineka Gray murder accused during summation
HIGH COURT Justice Bertram Morrison, the presiding judge in the trial of Gregory Roberts for the 2017 murder of Shineka Gray, has voiced doubt about one witness’ apparently rosy description of the defendant, which is at odds with the tone of several text messages between the parties.
“She said he’s a very good person, never hurt anybody. Gregory is this glorious saint which she has made him out to be, but the messages, the text messages which he sent … and the messages [witness] sent to him betray her portrayal of him as being a very good person and a very kind person,” Morrison said on Tuesday during his ongoing summation of the case, in which he has been instructing the seven-member jury how they are to treat the evidence given in the trial to date when they deliberate to arrive at a verdict.
The text messages to which the judge was referring were showcased to the court by a communication analyst witness for the prosecution between January 3 and 8 this year. The messages depicted various increasingly ominous communications between Roberts and the witness, who is the mother of his ex-girlfriend, as well as messages between Roberts and the ex-girlfriend.
During his summation on Tuesday, Morrison pointed out that the ex-girlfriend’s mother testified how, on the night of January 29, 2017, Roberts came to her house and was greeted by an associate of hers on her veranda. That associate, another civilian witness in the case, had earlier testified that Roberts showed him a video of himself, Roberts, stabbing Gray to death.
“I’ve already instructed you how you should regard [mother’s] evidence, or the evidence of any witness in this case; you can either accept it, accept part of it, or you can reject it. But where does this leave you? Because she says he [Roberts] came up to the house and that [other witness] went out there to him. She’s not denying that [other witness] didn’t go out there to him… she said that the grille was closed, locked,” Morrison pointed out.
“If he [Roberts] is this loving and kind person, ask yourself the question: Why didn’t she open the grille and say ‘Come in and have a seat, my beloved son-in-law?’ Ask yourself that,” Morrison advised the jury. “You are among the seven wisest persons who have ever sat in those chairs. Ask yourself that question.”
EXPERT EVIDENCE
The judge also instructed the jury to consider every piece of evidence during their deliberations for a verdict, including anything he may have omitted in his summation.
“Expert evidence is presented in a criminal trial to provide you with scientific information and opinion which is related to the witness’ expertise, which is likely to be outside of your experience. It is by no means unusual for evidence of this nature to be called,” said Morrison.
“You should bear in mind that, having given the matter careful consideration, you do not have to accept the evidence of the expert; you do not have to rely upon it. Indeed, I say that you do not have to accept everything which the expert has said,” Morrison added. “You should remember that this evidence is only part of the case, and that whilst it may be of assistance to you in reaching a verdict, you should reach your verdict having considered all of the evidence … if I fail to mention a point which you think is important, you must use it in your deliberations when arriving at a verdict.”
The judge’s summation continues today.
Gray, a 15-year-old student of the Green Pond High School in St James, was found dead in the Irwin community with multiple stab wounds on February 1, 2017, three days after she was last seen alive in Montego Bay returning home from the funeral of a schoolmate.