Accused Jhakira Matthews told a nine-member jury that her actions on the night of a stabbing incident were to save the life of her co-accused, Jurdie Miller, while he thanked her, saying that he could have died without her intervention.
Matthews of Scotts Terrace, Grazettes and Miller of Mile-and-a-Quarter, St Peter, are on trial in the No. 5 Supreme Court accused of causing serious bodily harm to Glen Wilson with intent on May 31, 2021. The two also face the lesser charge of unlawfully and maliciously inflicting serious bodily harm on Wilson on the same date.
After prosecutor State Counsel Maya Kellman closed the prosecution’s case, both accused, who are self-represented, opted to make unsworn statements from the dock.
In her testimony, Matthews said that she was at the Juice Spot Bar on Princess Alice Highway.
“I was in an altercation with Mr Wilson, myself and Mr Miller. On the day of the incident in question, I was trying to save a life,” she said. “Mr Wilson had a white-handled knife or object in his hand. As he mentioned, I disarmed him due to the fact of him about to cause bodily harm to Mr Miller. I only tried to save a life. Not to harm, not to take one. Only to save a life.
“My actions have led me here to where I am this afternoon but it was never my intention to be standing here or to cause Mr Wilson any harm whatsoever. My actions cause me to almost take one and I am sorry about that but that was never my intention but just to save one life.”
Miller said that on the day, he was drinking with friends, saw Matthews and bought a drink for her as they “reasoned about a problem I had”. He recalled her saying she was coming back and, after some time passed, he looked under the bar’s canopy and saw her and the complainant arguing.
He continued: “I stayed where I was and observed the situation and after about five minutes, I realised it was escalating. I approached Matthews and asked her what going on, being concerned as she was just with me a little while ago. The complainant was being aggressive at the time and they were both shouting at each other and I tried to de-escalate the situation.
“After a while, Glen told me: ‘Man why you don’t move from ‘round me, rasta man, and know I don’t like you.’ I said: ‘Big man you ain’t got to like me.’ From that the complainant went into a haversack and take out an object wrapped in cloth.
“At that moment, I started to fear for my life,” Miller testified, saying he and Wilson started to scuffle with the complainant who held his hair and pulled him to the ground.
“I could remember seeing him stabbing at me with the same object he had in his hand across my body and I started panicking. I remember getting up on my knees, holding his hand and trying to pull his hair from out of his hand. After that I saw blood on the ground. I get up and hold up my shirt and asked [Matthews] if I was stabbed because all that was going through my mind was that I get stabbed up. She said no, I wasn’t stabbed. We got up from there and walk in the Post Office direction and the police apprehend us in Baxters Road.
“To my knowledge if Jhakira Matthews didn’t do what she did, I would be the one that would have died five years ago because I was the one that was stabbed at. We get ourselves in trouble because we have been charged but I still have to be thankful to her because I am alive today.”
Justice Pamela Beckles will deliver her summation on Tuesday before handing the case to the jury.
(JB)
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