By LAMECH JOHNSON
Tribune Staff Reporter
ljohnson@tribunemedia.net
THE jury in a Cat Island murder trial heard testimony yesterday from the former supervisor of a forensic analyst who performed tests on samples collected and submitted by the Royal Bahamas Police Force.
Michelle Johnson, formerly of Fairfax Identity Laboratories, said she was the supervisor of April Perry, who is also no longer employed at the company after working there for four years.
Defence attorney Murrio Ducille has challenged the qualifications and expertise of Ms Perry in forensics. His client, Jason Glinton, sat in the prisoner’s dock listening as the witness gave evidence.
Glinton, of Devil’s Point, Cat Island, is on trial for the October 2012 murder of Fortis Moncur, who was the caretaker at Island Hopping resort where Glinton was employed at the time.
He is alleged to have committed the crime between October 5 and October 18 of that year. The deceased’s decomposed and charred remains were discovered by police shortly before midnight on October 18 after officers were notified of a “strange odour” in the area of a track road in Devil’s Point.
Glinton, who is on bail, has denied the allegation.
Kendra Kelly and Linda Evans are prosecuting the case.
Ms Johnson yesterday said she could recognise Ms Perry’s signature and was allowed by Justice Carolita Bethell to read the contents of a final report done on the testing of samples submitted to the Richmond, Virginia lab in November 2012.
Ms Johnson said that when she was in Nassau in November 2012, she had personally received from Sgt Sheria King the following secured samples: a tooth, body tissue, bone sample, and a whole-blood reference sample of Horatio Moncur for analysis.
The final report, which was produced in August 2014, found a partial male profile from the “John Doe” samples and concluded that a cross-reference with the whole-blood sample revealed the 99.982 per cent probability of a first-degree relation.
In cross-examination, Mr Ducille asked the forensic analyst if she was sure she had received the items in Nassau. Ms Johnson said she was sure and was also sure that it was Sgt King who handed her the items.
Mr Ducille suggested to the witness that it was not until August 2014 that an analysis was done in this case. Ms Johnson disagreed, adding that a preliminary report had been done in December 2012.
The lawyer also asked Ms Johnson why the signature of Charles Kelly was present on the final report when it was Ms Perry who was tasked with the analysis.
Ms Johnson said that Mr Kelly, head of the paternity unit at Fairfax, had done a statistical comparison of what Ms Perry had done.
Mr Ducille suggested that the preliminary report was not conclusive, but Ms Johnson disagreed, noting that the “sufficient information” they received from the first tests allowed them to note, at the end of the preliminary report, that the partial male profile obtained cannot be excluded as the biological brother of Horatio Moncur.
“Why was it called ‘preliminary report’ and not conclusive?” Ducille asked.
“We weren’t finished with our testing,” Ms Johnson replied.
The trial resumes today.
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