The Tribune

By LAMECH JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Reporter

ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

A MAN fighting extradition to Florida for a woman’s manslaughter has 90 days to file his appeal to the country’s highest court.

Trent Albury, 41, who is facing extradition to West Palm Beach to serve a 13 year sentence for the May 26, 2000, killing of Dawn Sheppard, had initially been granted leave by the Court of Appeal to appeal the approval of the extradition request to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in June 2011.

However, the case was dormant for nearly four years until yesterday’s proceeding when his lawyer Maurice Glinton said the court’s judgment at the time did not specify any conditions attached to the leave.

Though he did not object to a 90-day conditional leave, Crown respondent Neil Braithwaite said that a stipulation that Albury will be committed to prison should apply if the appellant fails to comply with the court’s order.

The case was adjourned to July 22 for a status hearing when Albury, who is on bail, was ordered to return to court.

In October 2001, Albury was convicted of a DUI manslaughter charge when a jury rejected his defence that he unwittingly took the “date rape” drug GHB (Gamma hydroxybutyrate) minutes before he crashed his truck into Sheppard’s minivan.

He lost his appeal and was expected to reappear to serve his 13-year sentence in March 2003.

However, Albury fled to The Bahamas where he was then arrested on a Palm Beach County warrant, and a magistrate agreed with Albury’s conviction in the United States.

Having been on remand for more than a year, Albury was released on bail pending the appeal of extradition to the Supreme Court and later the appellate court, which upheld the ruling of the magistrate.