Court orders updated medical report for defendant

A man accused of wounding and assault, who was sent to the Mental Health Centre in 2017, returned to court last Friday without a medical report having been prepared.

It was by chance that defendant Franklin Davis came before the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court last Friday, because Senior Magistrate Rickie Burnett asked for all his partly heard matters to be listed for that day.

Had it not been for that, it is uncertain when Davis would have appeared before the Senior Magistrate with a second medical report.

The first medical report was completed in 2017, which stated that Davis was in need of long term treatment and that he is a threat to others, Burnett informed.

Nevertheless, the second report that was ordered, has not been prepared since this date, and Davis has been kept at the MHC.

The case involving wounding and assault bodily harm offences, allegedly committed on February 15, 2016, at South Union, has been in the court system since 2016.

Defense attorney Ronald Marks relayed concerns voiced in other forums on the difficulty in monitoring and making the connection between the court and the MHC. He also told a story of a man that had been at the MHC for 30 plus years, who was going outside, and working during this time. After this, the man was sent to prison, and this is when lawyers became involved.

Prosecutor Corlene Samuel stood to ask that the matter be given a short adjournment to this week, “because he has been there for a while now, and this report should be prepared.”

The senior magistrate engaged the defendant, asking him how he was.

“Good,” Davis replied.

“Where do you want to go: home or mental health?” Burnett asked him. Davis answered “Home,” then added, “I dey out there long enough.”

“It would be wrong for me to send you home, having asked you to be evaluated at the Mental Health Centre, then turn around and send you home without that report. Can’t do that,” Burnett stated.

“What I’m going to do is ask the report to come here before me next week, and when that happens then I would know what to do,” the magistrate concluded.

He told the prosecutor to contact the MHC and tell them to have the report ready for today, August 13, when Davis will return to the court.