Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter

Five witnesses have so far testified at the trial of 32-year-old security guard Jeffrey Perry, who is charged with the murder of three children at Killancholly, St Mary in January 2005.

The trial began on Monday in the Home Circuit Court and the first witness called was Sonia Bailey Williams, mother of the children.

She broke down and cried as she recounted what took place when she went home and found her three children covered in blood. Perry is charged with the murder of 13-year-old Sue Ann Gordon, four-year-old Shadice Williams and 15-year Dwane Davidson.

Bailey Williams said she left home about 8.30 p.m. on January 27, 2005 and went to church. She said she left her four children at home and when she returned after midnight she found Sue Ann's body behind the gate. She said she ran down the road and made an alarm and residents came to her assistance.

She went back to the house, opened the front door and found Shadice behind the door with her intestines protruding. She said her 16-month-old son was standing beside Shadice. Dwane was on a bed in the room and he was covered in blood.

Perry was one of the persons who assisted in putting the children in a taxi that took them to the Annotto Bay Hospital, Bailey Williams told the court. She said Perry was making sounds as if he were crying.

Under cross-examination by attorney-at-law Linton Walters, she said that Perry was her cousin. She said Perry used to visit her home and would at times help the children with their homework. She said she had a good relationship with Perry and up to the time of the incident she had not seen him doing anything unusual.

Adduce evidence

The Crown is alleging that the children were fatally stabbed between January 27 and January 28, 2005.

Senior Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, Lisa Palmer, and Crown Counsel, Melissa Simms, in outlining the Crown's case on Monday, said the Crown would be relying on Perry's words to adduce evidence against him.

Dr David Crawford, who performed the post-mortem on the bodies on February 1, 2005, testified on Wednesday that the bodies all had stab wounds to the necks.

The doctor said the stab wounds damaged major vessels in the neck and caused massive bleeding. There were other injuries on the bodies and the doctor said a significant degree of force was used to inflict the injuries. He said Shadice had stab wounds to the heart and abdomen.

Died within half hour

The doctor said a hard, sharp object such as a knife could have caused the injuries. He said the children would have died less than half an hour after they were stabbed.

Detective Sergeant Cyprian Johnson said on February 8, 2005, he went with the accused, Perry's lawyer and other policemen to Killancholy where Perry showed them where he he had buried "the knife he used" under a nutmeg tree. The knife was tendered into evidence.

Senior Puisne Judge Marva McIntosh is presiding at the trial.