A self-confessed murderer will spend a minimum of 17 and a half years behind bars before he can be considered for release for the slaying of his friend.
Justice Carlisle Greaves sentenced Javonne Rommel Haynes of Syndicate Road, Bush Hall, St Michael, to life imprisonment with a starting point of a tariff of 35 years for murdering Kadeem Brathwaite on June 7, 2020, before several deductions were made including that for the deceased’s “extremely provocative” behavior..
Several witness statements were read in No. 3 Supreme Court, which placed Brathwaite and a number of his friends at Reece Road, Bush Hall, with Haynes and another man walking past the group. The witnesses stated that Brathwaite approached and held onto Haynes while searching him.
One witness told police: “I saw Javonne and Kadeem start to fight by a shop gate. Whilst they were fighting I heard Javonne say ‘Shoot he! Shoot he!’ When he said this, I saw (the other man) who was about an arm’s distance away point a firearm at Kadeem’s head… Javonne and Kadeem let go of each other and I saw Javonne snatch the firearm out of (the other man’s) grasp and in doing so, I saw Kadeem turn around and run off towards Pioneer Road. I then saw that Javonne had the firearm in his hand as he ran off behind Kadeem. And they turned right on to Pioneer Road and out of my sight.
“About two seconds after, I heard a loud explosion, which sounded like a gunshot, and it seemed to come from Pioneer Road. On hearing this, I ran up along Reece Road and turned right through a track. On doing so I heard about five to six more explosions, which sounded like gunshots.”
Another heard Brathwaite ask Haynes: “You got your gun on you? I hear you want to shoot me,” while Haynes tried to get away. Another witness told police that as Brathwaite held onto Haynes’ pants, he began punching Haynes to the left side of his head. They also reported that when Haynes took the gun from the other man, Brathwaite ran away with the convicted murderer in pursuit before hearing loud explosions.
One witness told police that after shooting the deceased, Haynes said: “He disrespect me and nobody can’t disrespect me on no block.”
In the autopsy, a gunshot entry wound and exit wound was found to Brathwaite’s lower back and cause of death was ruled as gunshot wound injuries to the abdomen with haemorrhage and shock.
Asking the court for leniency and pointing out that he had turned himself into the police, Haynes said: “I apologise to the Brathwaite family for the death of Kadeem. Up to the day he died he was my friend.”
Lamenting that the use of firearms to commit murder in this jurisdiction did not seem to be abating, Justice Greaves insisted that those convicted must expect substantial custodial sentences including life imprisonment.
The judge noted that the most aggravating factor of the offence was that the now convicted man pursued the deceased for some distance, shot him in his back and discharged several other rounds after Brathwaite fell. Justice Greaves then raised the tariff to 40 years.
This was then reduced by five years, after the judge described the deceased’s behaviour towards Haynes as “extremely provocative and humiliating” to the now convicted man.
“The one mitigating factor I find to be more significant is the agitation and provocation he endured at the time. Whether or not the deceased man had reason to believe that the now convicted man was going to shoot him at some time, his actions towards the now convicted man were extremely provocative. In fact, they were humiliating. He dressed him down in public in front others and searched him as though he was a schoolboy under the management of a headmaster. The evidence suggests that he (Brathwaite) started to beat him up and put some cuffs in him too. Every man has his pride.
“I think that is a substantial act of provocation, which could even have resulted in a verdict of guilty of manslaughter.”
Haynes was credited a one third discount for his plea and for the six years spent on remand.
Warning that having a gun affects persons’ minds in the same way alcohol gives them ‘dutch courage’, the judge said: “You can’t use it if you don’t have it”.
“You all must learn to put the guns down. If you did not have it that day, you would not have killed your friend.”
Acting Director of Public Prosecutions Krystal Delaney prosecuted the case, while defence attorney Sade Harris represented Haynes.
(JB)
