Self-proclaimed community leader Cedric “Burkie” Burke and his driver Keon Bain have been granted permission to amend their malicious prosecution and false imprisonment lawsuit against the State over their arrests during the 2011 State of Emergency (SoE).
During a hearing of the case before Justice Robin Mohammed in the Port-of-Spain High Court yesterday, their lawyer Richard Clarke-Wills applied to amend the lawsuit in light of new information related which he claimed recently come to his attention.
The information related to their arrests at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Port-of-Spain, on August 26, 2011.
Burkie and Bain were charged with being a gang leader and a gang member. They were denied bail for almost three months under the Anti-Gang Act before Director of Public Prosecutions discontinued the case against them due to a lack of evidence.
The amendment also relates to allegations that police allegedly told Bain that he was not the target of their investigation and that they wanted him to be an informant against Burke.
Clarke-Wills also informed Mohammed that he had previously held discussions with the Office of the Attorney General, who had previously indicated its intention to settle the duo’s case and over 40 others, which were filed by fellow detainees during the SoE.
However, he claimed that the negotiations broke down in June and have yet to resume.
Mohammed encouraged Clarke-Wills to continue the discussions as he pointed to the case of Kevin Stewart, a man from San Fernando who was among the first to sue the State after his release.
In July 2015, High Court Judge Joan Charles delivered judgement in Stewart’s favour and awarded him over $400,000 in compensation. The State appealed.
Delivering a 28-page judgement in July, this year, the Court of Appeal reversed Charles’ decision as it ruled that while there was insufficient evidence to arrest and charge Stewart, the police did not act maliciously.
“In my judgement it is quite plain on the facts of this case that the three police officers involved were motivated to apply the law fairly and with bona fides. The difficulty is that the provisions of the Anti-Gang Act require close application,” Appellate Judge Nolan Bureaux said in the judgement.
The Appeal Court reduced Stewart’s compensation to $50,000 as it felt that he was only entitled to damages for the 33 hours he spent in police custody before he was charged.
Mohammed agreed to give Burke and Bain until December 8 to file their amended statement of case. The State has until January 19 to respond.
About Burke
Burke became a social media sensation after he and fellow community activist Kenroy Dopwell turned up uninvited to the swearing-in ceremony of Port-of-Spain South MP Marlene McDonald as Public Utilities Minister in July. McDonald’s appointment lasted two days as she was replaced by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley following public furore over her connection to Burke.
It was the second sacking for McDonald, whose previous ministerial appointment as Housing Minister was revoked in March 2016 after she became subject of Integrity Commission and police investigations regarding allegations of facilitating a Housing Development Corporation (HDC) house for her partner. She was later cleared of any wrongdoing, leading to her second appointment.