Just? Scatliffe gets below minimum penalty for gun crime
Halim Scatliffe being escorted from the Magistrate’s Court after his sentencing on Wednesday.
Despite the 2015 amendment to the BVI’s gun laws which state that convicted gun offenders be sentenced to a minimum of five years in prison, fined at least $50,000 OR both, Halim Scatliffe — the man found with a loaded gun, $26,000 worth of cocaine, and other contraband weeks ago — will serve fewer than five years imprisonment for all those offences.
That was the sentence Magistrate Shawn Innocent handed down when the 35-year-old offender appeared before him on Wednesday.
Notably, the said amended gun laws provide for the court to exercise “discretion” and impose a lesser penalty if “it is fair and just in all the circumstances”, if it is of the opinion that the imposition of the minimum five-year penalty is “arbitrary and disproportionate”, or if the offender is “unfit to serve the minimum sentence or is of advanced years”.
Breakdown of sentences
A breakdown of Scatliffe’s sentence shows him being given three years and four months imprisonment for being in possession of an unlicensed firearm, and another four months imprisonment for possession of ammunition.
Scatliffe was sentenced to two year-and-half years imprisonment for possession of cocaine and another two-and-half years for possession of the drugs with intent to supply.
Magistrate Innocent ruled that the sentences run concurrently (side by side). That means the Huntums Ghut resident will only spend a total of three years and four months for the aforementioned offences.
Scatliffe, in the meantime, was slapped with an additional eight-month custodial sentence for common assault and two months for threatening language.
The court ruled that those two offences run consecutively or one after the other. That brings Scatliffe’s overall time in prison to four years and two months.
His sentence will commence from the date he was first remanded — September 22. The 35-year-old is currently serving a 12-month prison sentence for an unrelated drug matter.
What the court heard happened
The court heard that sometime in September this year, police apprehended Halim during a traffic stop after receiving reports that he had threatened to kill another man in relation to drugs.
It was during that time that police searched his vehicle and found a loaded 9mm Smith and Wesson pistol in a box with 15 rounds of ammunition.
Police subsequently headed to his home to conduct a further search when a vehicle with his father Jerome Scatliffe, and his Common Law wife Debralee Fahie was seen exiting the premises.
A search of that vehicle uncovered 260 grams of cocaine in a knapsack with 335 dime bags.
The trio was arrested and formally charged, however, the charges against Scatliffe senior and Fahie were later withdrawn.
Attorney-at-law Nelson Samuel represented Scatliffe.
READ: Halim Scatliffe urges other drug dealers to end practice
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How can this place get any better?
Never going to get any better unless the UK takes over. The corruption by the ruling belongers is so blatant and without shame it’s disgusting. A true third world toilet bowl ruled by primitive Africans masquerading as civilized people.
And the non Belonger status in the cours beingredients inconsistent in sentencing makes it well balanced.
And the non Belonger status in the cours beingredients inconsistent in sentencing makes it well balanced
What you have written and BVI News has published is a clear an evident attack and irreverence on a people, government and nation.You should be dealt with accordingly!
1.Only a maggot producing fly that cannot live or survive in his own faeces bowl would abode in a third world toilet bowl.
2.Only a maggot that’s living well within his environment will spew such hate, malice, venom and ignorance at its inhabitants.
3.It is only an abject uncivilised and primitive mind masquerading as a civil one will such filth originate.
A very uncivilised and son of a barbarian and authentic human hater you have demonstrated to be.
A poor excuse of a human being would be too good a characterisation to assign to you.
Lastly, we know who we are. And, we know that your characterisations of us are false and mere hatreds.
With regards to corruption, it is a way of life in the UK and across the globe. Why, because your civilised folk created and taught it to the world. Do read your history fella, mam.
And, if it does exist here, it is nowhere on the level here that it is in the UK. So why would we need more corrupts from UK to come here? It will only get worst.
But not only that, this “true third world toilet bowl ruled by primitive Africans masquerading as civilised people” will only be subjected to human atrocities of the most barbaric kind. .
And who wants re-live such incivilities as barbarism, apartheid and racism all over again?
Yep,there’s no hope in the court system. All we can do is just pray that God brings justice to all the families of victims of gun crimes
Would check Magistrate Shawn Innocent.. is there a reason why he is giving below legal minimum penalty?
so how he get so less and Dion get the max and more? Why are we so bias?
That’s Why.
telling yuh Jo Jo get 5 n he get 3 something aint right
That’s what you call a slap on the wrist. I don’t see how a 3 year sentence for a drug dealer found with a loaded gun can be considered a “fair sentence”. This place is just going to hell messon. A home owner with a gun trying to defend himself against a burglar would have gotten a stiffer sentence. This place is sick.
I agree. And already serving for a another drug related matter shows no repentance.
The man is laughing at how easy he got off. Place is really jokey messon.
Guess the magistrate done have an idea of the Societal Cliches! What a mockery of Justice!
Why!! gun, ammo, drugs, threat to kill ??? And he is given a sentence below the mandatory (?) years. Mr Innocent you will leave here ,when your contract is up ,and leave us that live here with criminals on our streets who shoul be in jail. SHAME on you.
You all got a Magistrate you deserve.
So he threatened to kill someone and was found with cocaine but Dion Thomas was sentenced to five years (first offense) and change but this person got the minimum.How is that fair ??
Mr Innocent, you chastise the DPP for being tardy and unprepared, yet when they do prepare and bring these criminal in front of you, you laugh in our face, i must say that i was in court when the VG jouvert fight, was before you, you laughed your head off, until you instructed the reporters not to publish that you were laughing, sir, are you taking us for granted, do you see us as a joke?, i once regard you as a stellar messenger of justice, now i have to revisit my thoughts of you, very very very disappointed in you, take a look at the gun crimes here sir, you insult us sir, please go back to st Lucia.
You cant read SCATO dem..bawnhair.lol
times like this you say…where is RedHead
This Magistrate seems like he is bent on bashing the prosecution and DPP’s Office while letting criminals walked away with minor sentences. Send Innocent back to St. Lucia please. Am sure if this was in his home country he would have never given such minor sentence. I also believe that this man have drugs and gun convictions. DPP, please appeal this sentence. Craziness!
this is the kind of c**p only happen in the b.v.i, let it it was someone not from the b.v.i I bet he would of get max for both chargers unbelievable.
Oh my God
Money talks. The client walks.
The other day we had hope with a proper sentence for illegal guns and now this stupidity!!
I believe this can be appealed and should be. Sentences running consecutivly???
Influence must be being brought to bear for the discrepancy in sentencing.
It is pretty clear from previous performance the longer this person is off the streets the better off we all will be.
I telling you guys, money buys everything. Don’t need to be a snitch to get lower sentence. Once you got someone on the outside willing to hit these p————s with some change they go all soft in court as shown here today… wise up
@Funny-….funny.
Simple .. Complain about Innocent to the UK .
And the non Belonger status in the cours beingredients inconsistent in sentencing makes it well balanced
Our judiciary sucks!!!! Some of these rulings re senseless. Politicians don’t seem to care and the rest of blog but create little stir when it comes to these criminals being treated like kings within our judicial system. It just might be time for Innocent to consider a new jurisdiction. We need judges that are no nonsense when it comes to gun crimes and not just weed.