Guilty plea to lesser offence

| 22/10/2014

(CNS): On the second day of her trial in Grand Court on Cayman Brac, Katie Jo Powell (26) pleaded guilty to wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm on the basis of excessive self-defence, a third charge added to her indictment. Powell had been charged with the attempted murder of Yves Anthony De la Torre (29) in the early hours of Saturday 20 April 2013, with the alternative charge of wounding with intent. However, after prosecutor Neil Kumar wrapped up the crown’s case against her, which included the dramatic last minute additional evidence of a video recording the victim had made of himself after Powell had stabbed him, he said the proposed course of a guilty plea to the new charge, which had been suggested by the defence, was acceptable to the director of public prosecutions (DPP).

Justice Charles Quin told the defendant that this was a “very sensible approach”. It was clear that she had stabbed him but, according to the medical report, the injuries were not serious or permanent and she was not 100 per cent to blame, the judge said.

He also commended the complainant, De la Torre, for taking a “mature view” by agreeing to this, noting the inconsistencies in his testimony. Although he was not in court, Justice Quin said he hoped that he would put this incident behind him.

“Everyone had had too much alcohol,” the judge said, in light of the evidence given by the victim, the defendant and the friends she had been out with that night.

Referring to De la Torre’s claims during his testimony Monday that he had been harassed by the police on Cayman Brac since he had moved to the island and that the officer who dropped him off at Powell’s house that night instead of Spot Bay, where he wanted to go, had been somehow complicit in the stabbing, the judge noted that De la Torre was very angry with the local police but said the investigating officer, PC Julian Durrant, had behaved impeccably and also commended the office of the DPP.

Although Powell did not take the stand, the statement she made to the police was read in court, in which she claimed that when she got home from the bar that night, she saw her friend Michelle Hunter sitting down with De la Torrebehind the house and they were both naked. She and her friend, Janna Parchment, found Hunter’s skinny jeans and helped her put them on. She told De la Torre to leave and picked up a knife from the kitchen.

Powell told police that De la Torre had “come at her” twice to get the knife from her but after that she had blacked out because she was drunk. When asked by the police, she said she did not know she stabbed him until the next day. When she was formally charged for attempted murder on 29 July 2013, she had stated that she was “only trying to defend myself”.

After hearing Powell’s statements, the judge watched a 10-minute video recording that De la Torre had made on his phone as he walked, bleeding from multiple stab wounds, from Powell’s home on the north west of Cayman Brac, next to Tip Top Boutique, to his mother’s apartment in Danzler Crescent on the south side. The video, which the victim had told the court about when he gave evidence Monday, was only given to the police that day, the 20 October, at 4:15pm after the court had adjourned for the day.

De la Torre, who said during his testimony that he has been seeing a psychiatrist since he was stabbed, was not in court Tuesday but his mother sobbed as she listened to the recording. “I want to go home; I want to go to Hawaii,” the victim said in the video.

Sentencing was set for Wednesday 17 December and the judge ordered a social inquiry report regarding the defendant as well as a victim impact report, which was requested by the crown.

Related article on CNS:

Stabbing trial opens on Brac

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  1. Anonymous says:

    "PERHAPS PEOPLE LIKE ME " …..I agree and disagree.  Used to be civilised is more like it. Cayman Brac is nothing but a bunch of gossiping idiots who take the word of other gossiping idiot  and media instead of trying to dig down to the truth! regarding this situation, it could have been handled better by both the community and the police. (One certain police officer there even admitted this to the victim). There they(RCIP) have their own way of dealing with "situations " as do the community on the Brac. Start at Spot Bay and travel down to the West End the story will add so many nit picking foolishness that nobody knows the truth. Funny thing is that no one will admit to not knowing the truth. Everybody on the Brac is always right. As for Social Service, they are there to help people. Plain and simple. Not to nit pick who gets it and who doesn't.  

    The thing there on the Brac is if you drink to get drunk everyday of the week, sell your Social Services vouchers to get cash to buy your liquor, drugs, etc ahh then you fit in. Nobody talks about that! If you can't do this then you don't fit in. Ahhh, then the gossip starts.

    Get a life Brackers! No wonder you don't consider yourselves Caymanian.  Yeh boy you different! In a wery bad way!

    FYI. Too that the victim here has Cayman Brac  roots on both grandparents sides  dating back to the 1700's. I bet nobody tried to find that out about him. That's what i mean. ……idiots! 

    • Anonymous says:

      Thank you blogger for identifying a real source of public information that shows what this person has done in past.

      Anytime you see people moving to Brac, it really makes you wonder.  Are they just elderly and came back home to live out their remaining years.  Or are they just running from their problems in US or Grand Cayman?

      Why would anybody from Grand Cayman want to work/ive on the Brac?  Must be that they are related to certain persons that can get them a job or enroll them in Social Services.

      Our little community welcomes with huge open arms those from other places who feel that it is Government's job to take care of them.

      Come to the Brac all ye destitute/unemployed/street wondering souls – our elected officials and senior civil servants will be there to assist you in your plight!!!!

       

       

      • spotsydebbie says:

        Perhaps people like me (who used to live in Grand Cayman for a short time) would rather work and live in Cayman Brac because it is a civilized society, rather than Grand Cayman, which is the armpit of the Cayman Islands!  You asked…I answered!

  2. Anonymous says:

    The social service department is a enabler of laziness and drunkeness. Children and Family services unit in Cayman Brac need to STOP supporting those that are too lazy to work. Then the police need to arrest those who will not work and charge then with being vagbonds with no visible means of support. There are hundreds of work permit holders in Cayman Brac. Locals could have the jobs if they really wanted to work.

    • Anonymous says:

      Now if she is on Social Services and has children, how does she find the time and money to get drunk?  Or does Social Services now give vouchers for alcohol?  Why give these young lazy people money for rent, money for food, money for school lunches, money for uniforms, money for someone to clean house, only thing they don't do for them is wipe their backside.

      Got to admit the vagabonds got it good.  All they got to do is plead their case to Queen Juliana or Moneyman Moses and both of them will use their political power to what they can.  

      But even if these type of people were offered work, I seriously doubt they would last> why work if you can live like a Prince/Princess at the expense of Government.

      And the blogger who wrote about Hawaii is 100% correct.    Our immigration and police are either too coward or too inept to do the right thing and proactively coordinate extradition. 

      We live in paradise – just wonder who is enjoying life better – those who work hard to get by orthose who hardly ever work.

      At least if she is sent to prison, she won't be a public nuisance on Cayman Brac for a little while.

      Young people, like this, on Social Services will have this as their career and lifestyle – they will be a burden on society until they go to Heaven.

    • Anonymous says:

      You are right about that! Put a 345 in their hand and they're as happy as a pig in ….!

    • Anonymous says:

      Tipical…..dont know who though. ….you or the Brac. I love living on Grand where the gossip is minute and life is better.  Lots better! 

  3. Anonymous says:

    Do a simple google and you'll find out why he probally cant return to Hawaii (Maui) or the USA (both mom and son). Our Government supporting both parties invovled in this case with their drinking habits! Its a disgrace and social service needs to stop supporting the lazy and worthless to society.. What do these people contribute to our society other than crime and burden! Hard cold truth and it has to be said!

    • Anonymous says:

      Well stated and to the point.  We have enough burdens in our community to make up a whole new district – oh duh – the burdens can vote, got to watch out that their don't put their own candidate into the Legislative Assembly – ha, ha, just being sarcastic.