The Tribune

By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Staff Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A CONTROVERSIAL ruling that spared a Grand Bahama businessman jail time after he was convicted of carrying a loaded gun in a nightclub is set to be challenged, with Housing and Urban Renewal Minister Keith Bell warning the outcome risks undermining confidence in law enforcement.

The Department of Public Prosecutions confirmed yesterday that it will appeal the sentence imposed on Lloyd Rolle Jr, 28, who was found guilty after trial of possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.

Rolle was convicted in Grand Bahama’s Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday but avoided prison, with Deputy Chief Magistrate Charlton Smith imposing a $12,000 fine and two years’ probation. He was fined $10,000 for the firearm offence and $2,000 for ammunition.

The case stems from a March 21, 2023, incident when Rolle was found with a loaded weapon in his waist while inside the Zero Degrees nightclub in Grand Bahama.

During the trial, Rolle claimed he had been framed by police officers, but the magistrate rejected that defence and accepted the prosecution’s evidence.

Prosecutors had urged the court to impose a custodial sentence, arguing that Rolle took the matter to trial and did not accept responsibility at any stage. They recommended a four-year prison term, stressing the dangers of carrying a loaded firearm in a crowded public place.

Defence attorney Murrio Ducille, however, pressed for a non-custodial sentence, pointing to Rolle’s lack of prior convictions, good character, and similar cases where fines were imposed.

Magistrate Smith ultimately determined that a custodial sentence was not warranted, citing Rolle’s clean record. The decision has since drawn scrutiny and prompted the DPP’s planned appeal.

The case also sparked debate in the House of Assembly, where Mr Bell, a former police officer, raised concerns about the ruling's implications.

He said he was contacted by a police officer in his constituency who was troubled by the outcome.

Mr Bell said the case underscored both the seriousness of the offence and the rejection of claims that police acted improperly.

“As a former police officer, our officers deserve our support when they do their duty properly,” Mr Bell said.

He warned that such outcomes risk weakening public confidence in the police.

“It cannot be, Madam Speaker, that officers risk their safety to take illegal firearms off the streets, their integrity is publicly questioned, and then the country simply moves on.”

While acknowledging the independence of the judiciary, Mr Bell questioned whether the sentence reflected the seriousness of the offence.

“When a loaded firearm, Madam Speaker, is involved in a public place and when serious allegations against police officers have been disproven, the country is entitled to ask whether the outcome properly reflects the seriousness of the offence and the message we send out about illegal firearms.”

He added that officers must feel supported when carrying out their duties.

“At the end of the day, Madam Speaker, our police officers must know that when they act lawfully and professionally this country unequivocally stands behind them,” he said.

In October, a wealthy businessman, James Finkl, 62, escaped a prison term for firearm offences and was instead fined $1.4m despite a 2021 Court of Appeal ruling that magistrates had no authority to impose non-custodial sentences for such offences. Director of Public Prosecutions Cordell Frazier defended the penalty at the time, saying: “Sentencing is an art. There is no fixed rule for every case.”