Teenager gets five years in remote control manslaughter case

Moments after hearing one woman get sentenced to seven years for manslaughter, Alicia Akers was seen shedding tears before she even took the defendant’s box.

When she finally did, Justice Frederick Bruce Lyle slapped her with a five-year prison sentence for manslaughter.{{more}}

“Violence is not the answer for everything” said Justice Bruce Lyle after handing down the penalty to the 19 year-old Frenches woman last Friday at the Criminal Assizes at the High Court.

Akers is responsible for the stabbing death of Kemron “Sheppy” Alexander, a 16-year-old labourer also of Frenches.

Alexander succumbed to a stab wound to the left side of the chest at about 11 a.m. on Saturday August 5, 2006.

The court heard that Akers and the deceased were at home where Alicia was listening to music on the stereo. Alexander, who was outside did not like the songs that were playing and went inside to change the stereo to what he liked. It was said that both Alexander and Akers were switching the music back and forth until he tried to grab the remote control for the stereo from Akers. Akers reportedly pulled away and pushed the remote into her pants where Alexander tried to push his hand for it. Alexander repeatedly kept punching Akers about her body to get the control from her.

Akers said she kept telling the deceased to desist but he did not stop. After he kept on punching her, Akers took a knife and plunged it into Alexander’s chest.

Akers defence attorney, Grant Connell said that there was a great element of provocation and abuse that his client had to succumb to. Connell told the court that one witness at the Preliminary Inquiry said that he always told Kemron not to interfere with Alicia. He said his client expressed great remorse for what happened and her tears were no act for the court.

“In this brutish and crude society, men treat our women as if they are a piece of floor cloth. When the state can’t protect a woman, what can she do?” Connell added that in light of the escalating crime situation, the “machinery of leniency may have become rusted and in this case of his client who was the victim of abuse, the machine needs to be oiled,” said Connell.

Delivering his closing statements, Justice Frederick Bruce Lyle said that it was clear that Akers had a rough childhood but she lost all self-control on that fatal day. As he spoke, the tears continued to flow from Akers eyes. “Every time you come here you are always crying. I hope your tears are genuine.”

Justice Bruce Lyle said Akers was rather lucky that the deceased had been known as a bully in the community. He reiterated his point from the previous sentencing that “Persons must learn to control their anger.”