Wallace v The Queen

• Jurisdiction: St Lucia
• Judge: Lewis, C.J.
• Judgment Date: 10 March 1972
• Neutral Citation: LC 1972 CA 4
• Docket Number: Criminal Appeal No. 12 of 1971
• Court: Court of Appeal (Saint Lucia)
• Date: 10 March 1972

Court of Appeal

Lewis, C.J, Cecil Lewis, J.A., St. Bernard, J.A.

Criminal Appeal No. 12 of 1971

Wallace

and

The Queen

W. Cenac for appellant.

L. Williams for respondent.

Criminal law - Appeal against Conviction — Housebreaking — Whether the trial judge correctly directed the jury on how to deal with certain evidence — Conviction quashed.

Lewis, C.J.

1 The appellant was jointly charged with Clement Clairmont on an indictment for the offence of attempted house-breaking. They were both convicted both applied for leave to appeal. Clairmont, against his conviction and sentence and the appellant against his conviction. The application of Clement Clairmont for leave to appeal was refused by this Court but leave was granted to the appellant and counsel assigned. The court is indebted to learned counsel for a very thorough examination of the evidence given in the case. The case for the Crown, briefly, was that on the 2nd July, 1971, the appellant and one Koodabakus had gone into a supermarket belonging to Peter & Co. at Ganter's Creek and bought a bottle of soft drink and looked around. For some reason which did not come out in the evidence, perhaps because of some background knowledge, the clerk who attended to them decided that it was a matter she should report to the Manager. There is no evidence as to what action the Manager took, but that night, at about 8 p.m. Superintendent Frederick and Cpl. Agdoma took up observation duty in the bush near to that supermarket at about 8 o'clock. They remained there until at about 10 minutes past 2 in the morning, when they saw five men arrive. These men, Cpl. Agdoma said, entered the yard near to Ganter's building and passed under a lamp post with 2 electric lights — very bright electric lights — and as they passed under the light, he recognised the appellant and the other accused, Clairmont. The appellant, he said was naked, and was carrying a crowbar. He went to a louvered window, inserted the crowbar and applied pressure to it, obviously with the intention of breaking it; at that time Clairmont was close to him — about a foot or two away, looking around and keeping watch. He and Superintendent Frederick came out of the bush, Clairmont gave warning and the two men ran away towards the Vigie Road. There was some shooting and subsequently Clairmont was found lying on his belly, bleeding from his back.

2 They summoned police assistance and when Assistant Superintendent Alphonse arrived on the scene, he asked Clairmont what had happened, to which the reply was received that Frank Rambally had brought him there with Vernon Wallace, the appellant to steal whisky, in his red Holden, he shot him and ran away. This statement was repeated by Clairmont at the hospital. This witness was cross-examined by the appellant and said that at the preliminary inquiry before the magistrate, he had mentioned that he had recognised this Frank Rambally and, that he had seen Frank Rambally along with the two accused,...