DPP debunks ‘friendship’ claims between magistrate/ state prosecutor in Bisram case

Director of Public Prosecution Shalimar Ali-Hack

Director of Public Prosecutions Shalimar All-Hack debunked claims by the defense counsels in the Marcus Bisram that state prosecutor Stacy Goodings and Magistrate Renita Singh share a close friendship.
“Totally false, that is totally false” the Director of Public Prosecution told BIG Smith News Watch in an invited comment Thursday afternoon.

On Wednesday, Chief Magistrate acting Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus denied an application by Bisram though his lawyers to have his Preliminary Inquiry heard in Georgetown and instead transferred the case back to the Corentyne Magisterial District before Magistrate Renita Singh at the Whim Magistrate’s Court.

The matter was pushed around the Berbice Magisterial District before being brought to town as the prosecution and defense played cat and mouse which ended in Senior Magistrate Alex Moore being ordered to recuse himself from the case.
Bisram was accused of coerced, procured and commanded five persons to murder Faiyaz Narinedatt, between October 31, 2016, and November 1, 2016. The matter will be called next Monday, at Whim in East Berbice.

When the matter was called on Monday last before the acting Chief Justice, defense lawyer Glen Hanoman told the court they would prefer if the matter started with her. However, the magistrate without haste, enquired if the matter was not one for the Corentyne Magisterial District.

It was at that point that the lawyer informed the court that they would be happy if any magistrate from Georgetown could go to Berbice and conduct the trial.

The defense had also asked to see the submissions made by the prosecution for the recusal of the previous magistrates from the matter as well as the letter sent to the Chancellor of the Judiciary by the Director of Public Prosecution.

To the latter, the state prosecutor said that she would need to seek advice from the DPP before making the submission available to the defense, to which Hanoman replied that all they want is a due process which includes the disclosures of those documents.

The magistrate then pointed out that the document that she has was not one which sent to the Chancellor but rather one which was sent to the DPP.
Bisram matter has been plagued with several circus-like developments