The state will re-try Williams murder case

The State will re-try the case of murder against Mackinley Williams of Kingshill in the death of his cousin Dwight Auguiste. Lead prosecutor Keith Scotland of Trinidad & Tobago who was absent when the eight-woman one-man jury came back with a non-verdict on Thursday December 1, 2016 told The SUN most emphatically that the State would return to court with the case.

Justice Victoria Charles-Clarke heard the case and she declared a hung jury with a 6-3 division and then discharged the jury.

Mackinley Williams was charged with the murder of Dwight Auguiste at Kingshill between December 3 and 24, 2013. Darius Jones conducted the defence at the Roseau High Court between November 21 and December 1, 2016.

The State called 12 witnesses, including the accused's mother, Pamela Williams, and his sister Shamani St Rose.

According to the evidence provided to the court, Pamela Williams said she returned from work about 2:30pm on Wednesday December 4, 2013. While doing laundry and preparing lunch her older son, Mackinley Williams (also known as JR) also arrived from work after three. The two had a conversation when the deceased, her cousin Dwight Auguiste came from down the street and started swearing. The deceased and the accused lived in adjoining apartments in the ground floor of the two-floor building of Pamela Williams. Auguiste went into his apartment and returned and had some exchanges with Mackinley. Dwight went back into his apartment and returned with a coke bottle and sent it at Mackinley. The bottle missed. The deceased went back to his apartment and returned with another bottle and a sock with an object it, said Pamela Williams.

In an unsworn statement Mackinley, said he was trying to knock off some mud from his slippers when Dwight struck him on the head with the bottle. He fell to his knees and then Dwight held him around the neck. He had blood coming from and from his thumb.

"I saw Dwight, he had a scissors in his hand, but he went towards the road. I passed on my way to the bathroom upstairs going to bathe. After bathing, I went downstairs, cleaned up, eat something. I could hear Dwight on the road making noise. I left to go down the road. I saw my cousin on the ground, and the shopkeeper who is Aurelia David. I saw her turning him over and calling his name. To tell you the truth I looked at him and I saw he was breathing. He had a lot of bruises on him, under his nose, hands and knees. To tell you the truth I did not stop," he said.

A resident of Kingshill, Jennifer James said she was in her bedroom when she saw Dwight walking down the road in boxer short and shirtless. Dwight went at the back of a white pickup truck at the bottom of a flight of steps coming from Mr Richard's shop. She saw JR coming down the road in a black T-shirt. He was going towards the back of the white pickup truck. She couldn't see Dwight, but she saw JR behind the truck with hand up, and she went on demonstrate a blow coming down from above the head.

"Then I heard 'whoo'. Something sounded like the slash of a glass bottle. The voice saying whoo sounded like the deceased. There was nobody else on the road. The accused left and walked down from the white pickup," she said.

She left her bedroom and went to the truck…

Aurelia David, the daughter of the Mr. Richard was attending shop and watching television when she heard a noise coming from the road. She went to the railing overlooking the road and saw Dwight at the back of my father's truck, under the truck.

"I saw his cousin, JR Mackinley in the area of Dwight, leaving the area… about three feet from Dwight."

She called the Fire & Ambulance Service.