Calvin Kemo Chase, a miner who was found guilty of raping a girl when she was 13 years old, has been sentenced to 12 years behind bars.
Chase, 25, of Charity, Essequibo Coast, was sentenced by Justice Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the High Court at Suddie yesterday when he appeared virtually. He had previously been found guilty of the rape and his sentencing was deferred until yesterday when a probation report was read to the court.
Chase was initially charged with two counts of rape. However, he was only found guilty by a jury of one count.
According to the charge, Chase raped the woman on her thirteenth birthday. He reportedly told the child that it was her birthday present.
The young woman’s recollection of the events is that the man had raped her numerous times before her birthday. She told the court that she will always remember the act against her body. She told the court that every birthday since the rape happened has been a reminder of the violation. She asked the court to give her the satisfaction of having Chase punished for his actions.
Chase had pleaded not guilty and maintained his innocence throughout the trial and sentencing. When given a chance to speak, Chase told the court that he was innocent and that he didn’t do what the woman claims he did.
According to the probation report, Chase, who played in the church band at Charity until the allegation was made against him at the age of 17, had no other brushes with the law. The man’s wife told the probation officer that he is a good husband and father, while the prison officers said he was well behaved and got along well with other prisoners. Chase is a father of three and is expecting a fourth child.
Chase was represented by attorney-at-law Latchmi Dindayal, who in a plea of mitigation said that the probation report supports the man’s good behaviour and his participation in religious, social and neighbourhood activities. Dindayal said that these factors point to his client’s good character and he urged the court to take that fact into consideration when handing down the sentence. He also reminded the court that the man was a juvenile at the time that the offence occurred.
Justice Sewnarine-Beharry noted that the evidence proved that the offence was repeated against the woman, who was a mere child at the time. In handing down the sentence, the judge said she considered the emotional and psychological trauma the crime had on the woman, the convict’s lack of remorse, and the age of the complainant and attached five years for each factor. The judge also said that seven years were added because of the fact that the crime was repeated. She said that she also considered the tender age of Chase when he committed the offence and deducted five years from the sentence. Another five years were deducted after considering the clean record he had. He will, therefore, spend 12 years in jail.
Meanwhile, the sentencing of David Smith, which was expected to be done yesterday, was deferred for the Judge to consider his probation report. Smith, 32, of Bamboo Landing, Region Seven, was charged with murder but he pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter.
The charge against Smith, 31, alleges that on March 22, at Black Water Backdam, Cuyuni River, he killed his cousin, Dave Boyal. His sentencing was deferred until December 17.
