Man jailed of manslaughter without reasonable doubt

...the accused admitted throwing a burning kerosene stove at his father (the deceased) following an argument with him.

A20-year-old man of Nadi has been convicted of manslaughter of his father.

Avinaash Kamal was charged with one count of manslaughter. On December 2, 2015, at Nadi, Kamal engaged in a conduct which caused the death of Amresh Kamal, the accused’s father.

The accused was 18 years old at the time of the incident and his father was 40 years old. Judge Justice Daniel Goundar, while delivering his judgment at the High Court in Lautoka last week, said the accused admitted throwing a burning kerosene stove at his father (the deceased) following an argument with him.

As the result of that conduct, the father was set ablaze and sustained 35 per cent burns of the total body surface area. The victim had suffered third degree burns to his legs.

The court heard that the doctor gave evidence during trial that the third degree is the most serious burn injuries.

The victim was hospitalised on December 2, 2015. He was immobile and kept in isolation at the Burns Unit because of the severity of his injuries. A surgical team cleaned and dressed his wounds in the surgical theatre. Within a week, the victim developed bacterial infection in the blood and

pneumonia. He was placed on antibiotics and was monitored daily by the Intensive Care Specialists.

Despite all these care, the victim passed away on January 17, 2016, at the hospital. The post mortem examination revealed that the deceased died of blood clots in the vessel that pumped blood from his heart to his lungs.

The pathologist in his evidence had stated that the primary cause of death was triggered by the complications that the patient (deceased -Kamal) developed as the result of his burn injuries.

Justice Goundar said: “I feel sure that the accused knew that there was a substantial risk of serious harm to his father when he threw a burning kerosene stove at him and setting him ablaze and that he was not justified in taking that risk.

“The prosecution has satisfied guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The accused is convicted of manslaughter as charged,” Justice Goundar said.