By FARRAH JOHNSON
fjohnson@tribunemedia.net
TWO teenagers who are not enrolled in school were yesterday charged with violating the emergency lockdown.
The teens — who are 15 and 16 — were among several people who appeared before Magistrate Derence Rolle-Davis for curfew and lockdown infractions.
The boys were charged after police found them on East Bay Street near Rubis gas station around noon on April 13, while the country was on a five-day lockdown. They pleaded guilty to the charge and the matter was adjourned to June 2 so that the Department of Social Services could investigate the circumstances of their households. One boy was accompanied by his mother while the other had an older sister present.
During the hearing, they told Magistrate Rolle-Davis they only violated the lockdown orders because they were hungry and had no more food in their homes.
It was also discovered both boys were not enrolled in a school. The 15-year-old’s mother told Magistrate Rolle-Davis that her son previously attended Galilee College, but said she was trying to find another school for him because he wanted to go to one where he could play ball and Galilee didn’t offer sports. The 16-year-old revealed he was “supposed to be in Grade Eleven” at C I Gibson Senior High, but was “kicked out last year” after a group of boys “ganged” him.
In response, Magistrate Rolle-Davis told the boys’ guardians that the juveniles were their responsibility and the things they did were a reflection on them. He also said it was their responsibility to ensure the teenagers stayed in their own homes during the lockdown.
As a result, Magistrate Rolle-Davis said that he would have the Department of Social Services do an inquiry on both households to investigate their circumstances and then decide what course of action to take once he received an official report.
Meanwhile, 19-year-old Perez Collie was also charged after officers found him in an abandoned building around 2am on Sunday.
He pleaded guilty, but was discharged after he told Magistrate Rolle-Davis that he had only left his house because he had a “petty altercation” with his mother, which resulted in her kicking him out.
Collie said after the incident with his mother, he went to his cousins to see if he could sleep at their home that night, but nobody answered him. He said after getting no response from relatives, he decided to go to a neighbour who told him he could sleep in a shack in their yard. As a result, Magistrate Rolle-Davis noted that the defendant was technically at a residence during the time of his arrest and discharged him. Still, he urged Collie to make amends with his mother.
Denero Fox, 34, also pleaded guilty to violating the lockdown after he was found on Shirley Street around 6.40am on April 8. He was fined $400 or 14 days in prison.
Lorrinki Flerissent, 19, was charged after officers found him on Joe Farrington Road around 9.50pm on Sunday. He pleaded guilty and was fined $500 or 15 days in prison. During the hearing, Flerissent told Magistrate Rolle-Davis he only violated the lockdown because he was trying to make it home after coming from seeing his “little thing.” When asked why he didn’t stay the night since the weekend lockdown was in effect, he stated he didn’t want to because his girlfriend was “running on”.
Officers found Shamuel Burrows, 46, on Beatrice Avenue around 10.20pm on Monday. He pleaded guilty to the charge and was fined $350 or 10 days at the BCDS.
Vincent Ingraham, 46, was also charged after he was found near Checkers Cafe on Fox Hill Road around 6.30pm on Monday. He pleaded guilty and was fined $200 or five days in prison. During the arraignment, he told Magistrate Rolle-Davis that he was an essential worker because he worked on a garbage truck. He explained that he only broke the curfew because he was carrying his elderley mother to the foodstore.
Asked why he did not show officers an ID to prove he was an essential worker, Ingraham said that the company he worked for did not give them IDs or letters. As a result, he was allowed to make a call to his employer to verify his claims. Once the call was made, it was revealed that Ingraham’s employers only gave exemption letters to their drivers. The officer who made the call also said Ingraham’s employer said he was supposed to be working a double shift from 5am-6pm on the day he was arrested. In light of that information, Magistrate Rolle-Davis told the defendant that the time given by his employer meant that he did not have permission to be on the road after 6pm. As a result, Ingraham was cautioned and fined.
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