A man of south Trinidad, who admitted to chopping the mother of his child during a domestic dispute in 2010, has been fined $5,000 and ordered to pay $40,000 in compensation.
Anthony Farrow, who entered into a plea agreement with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in March, received the sentence for attempted murder from High Court Judge Lisa Ramsumair-Hinds during a virtual hearing on Friday.
Under the terms of the agreement, Farrow, who was initially charged with attempted murder and wounding with intent, agreed to plead guilty to the substantive charge in exchange for the DPP’s Office discontinuing the latter charge.
State prosecutor Danielle Thompson and Farrow’s defence attorney Peter Carter submitted a joint sentencing recommendation in which they recommended that he receive the fine and pay the compensation to the victim, whose name was withheld to protect her identity.
During the hearing, Ramsumair-Hinds noted that she did not have to accept the sentence recommendation if she felt that it was too lenient or harsh.
Stating that domestic and intimate partner violence was far too prevalent in T&T, Ramsumair-Hinds noted that she was reluctant to accept the recommendation as she felt that a non-custodial sentence was inappropriate in the case considering the Farrow was alleged to have chopped the victim three times during an argument over their then infant child.
However, she noted that there was very little local case law on the use of plea bargaining because of its relatively recent use, so she had to apply Canadian legal precedents which warned against interfering with joint sentencing recommendations unless there were serious public interest considerations.
“I can not say that the joint recommendation is so unhinged that it would bring the criminal justice system into disrepute or lead right thinking citizens to believe that it has broken down,” Ramsumair-Hinds said.
She noted that plea bargaining is an essential element of efficient criminal justice systems and could not be considered to be a “necessary evil”.
“There is nothing shameful in the practice,” she said.
In his submissions during the hearing, Carter said that his client could afford to pay the fine forthwith but needed a payment plan to pay the compensation.
He also requested that Justice Ramsumair-Hinds include provisions that Farrow receive a minimal default sentence if he missed an individual monthly payment as under normal conditions an accused person is given a substantial default sentence and would not be required to clear the balance.
Thompson did not object as she noted that the DPP’s Office wanted to ensure that the victim received the compensation.
“We do not intend to put the prisoner in a position in which he is doomed to fail,” she said.
As part of her sentence, Ramsumair-Hinds stated that he would receive a two year sentence if he failed to pay the fine and would receive a two week sentence for each missed $2,000 monthly payment of compensation.
The DPP’s Office was also represented by Rhea Libert.
