Barbara Gayle, staff reporterA 51-year-old night club operator who stabbed and killed a patron during a dispute over a chair which broke when the patron and his girlfriend sat on it, has been sentenced by the Court of Appeal to 12 years imprisonment at hard labour.
Aston Morgan, who operates the Whispers Snack Bar and Lounge in Old Harbour, St. Catherine, was convicted last year of non-capital murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment.
The judge recommended that he should serve 15 years before he is eligible for parole.
Mr Morgan appealed last week Monday against conviction and sentence on the ground that the trial judge had failed to leave the issue of provocation to the jury .
Attorney Jack Hines, who represented Mr. Morgan, argued that there was evidence on which the jury could find or might have found that there was provocation.
Mr. Hines said that Mr. Morgan had said that the deceased had said certain words to him and done certain things to him which if left for the jury's consideration would amount to provocation. He said those issues were not left for the jury's consideration.
Mr. Hines said because provocation arose, Mr. Morgan should have been convicted of manslaughter.
Manslaughter
verdict
The Court of Appeal comprising the Hon. Ian Forte, President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Seymour Panton and Justice Neville Clarke agreed with Mr. Hines and set aside the conviction of non-capital murder.
The court substituted a verdict of manslaughter and sentenced Mr. Morgan to 12 years imprisonment at hard labour.
The Crown had led evidence at Mr. Morgan's trial on March 5, last year in the St. Catherine Circuit Court that the deceased, Peter Pryce, of Old Harbour, and his girlfriend had gone to the night club which was operated by Mr. Morgan.
The deceased and his girlfriend sat on a chair which broke. The bartender told the deceased to pay for the chair and he refused.
The bartender called Mr. Morgan and, during an argument between the men, Mr. Morgan pulled a knife and stabbed the deceased.
After the deceased was stabbed, Mr. Morgan chased the deceased's girlfriend telling her that he killed her man and would kill her too.
Mr. Morgan, in his defence, said that, after the bartender called him, he went inside the bar where the deceased attacked him with a knife.
The deceased slashed him in his face and inflicted a wound to his right arm.
He said while he was retreating from the attack, he fell and the deceased stood over him cursing him and saying "you know seh mi a bad man."
Two policemen testified at the trial that when they went to the scene Mr. Morgan told them that the deceased had attacked him. They said they saw wounds to Mr. Morgan's face and right arm.
The judge left self-defence for the jury's consideration but the jury convicted Mr. Morgan of non-capital murder.
