A city magistrate yesterday overruled a no-case submission and ordered the Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) salesman Jermaine Lambert, who was charged with causing the death of a pedestrian, to lead his defence.
It is alleged that Lambert, of 395 Westminster, West Bank Demerara, on June 16th, 2018, at Lombard Street, drove minibus BRR 5039 in a manner dangerous to the public in Georgetown, thereby causing the death of Richard Barker.
When Lambert’s trial resumed yesterday, Magistrate Faith McGusty ruled on the no-case submission that was previously made on behalf of the defendant.
The magistrate noted that the prosecutor’s case indicated that at the time of the accident the defendant was not exercising some of the five Cs. It was noted that the defendant, at the time of the accident, did not maintain a suitable distance from the vehicle that was in front of him and if he would have maintained a suitable distance he would not have to swerve suddenly and could have avoided colliding with the now deceased man.
Magistrate McGusty then overruled the no-case submission and called upon Lambert to lead his defence.
The matter was later adjourned until October 25th.
It is the police’s case that on the day in question, at about 4.40 pm, Lambert was the driver of BRR 5059, which was proceeding north along the western side of Lombard Street.
At the time, a bus, which was in front of Lambert’s vehicle, slowed at the pedestrian crossing to allow Barker to cross. However, Lambert allegedly swerved from behind the bus and into the eastern lane, and as he did so he hit the now deceased man, who was still crossing the road.
Barker was later rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital in an unconscious state and he subsequently succumbed on July 5th, 2018.
