Less than two days after it received presidential assent, a new crime-fighting law which denies bail for 120 days to people accused of violent gun-related crimes was applied for possibly the first time yesterday.
Ironically, it was not a hardened criminal who was subject to its controversial provisions, but a decorated police officer with over 12 years experience.
PC Lorenzo Lezama, 31, of Edinburgh 500, Chaguanas, appeared before Magistrate Aden Stroude in the Port-of-Spain Fifth Court charged with shooting two men with intent to cause them grievous bodily harm on Carnival Tuesday.
He now joins a growing list of almost two dozen police officers who have been charged with various criminal offences which arose during the execution of their duties this year.
Lezama, who was last assigned to the North Eastern Division Task Force (NEDTF), was not called upon to plead to the charges, which were laid indictably.
He was granted bail by a justice of the peace after being charged on Thursday night and walked into the St Vincent Street, Port-of-Spain, courthouse accompanied by his twin brother and several relatives and friends yesterday.
As he entered the prisoner enclosure when his case was called, Stroude immediately queried why he had been granted bail before his first court appearance.
“You get bail for these types of offences?” Stroude asked.
Sensing that Stroude intended to revoke Lezama’s bail, his lawyer, Criston J Williams, claimed his client might be forced to spend the weekend in prison as he might not be able to obtain approval for fresh bail yesterday afternoon.
“He will be like any other citizen,” Stroude said, before he informed Williams that the new legislation might be applicable in Lezama’s case.
Stroude then denied Lezama bail under the new law.
After Lezama was remanded into custody, Williams requested that security arrangements be put in place at the Maximum Security Prison, Arouca, to ensure his client did not interact with other prisoners, since he might have been responsible for arresting some of them in the past.
But Stroude said such powers were not within his remit and advised Williams to communicate his request to acting Prisons Commissioner Sterling Stewart.
The shooting is alleged to have occurred around 8 pm on February 17 at Cornelio Street, Woodbrook. The victims were Enrique Romero and 63-year-old United States citizen Colin Baird, who was vacationing in Trinidad at the time. Romero was shot once in his leg and twice in his stomach, whereas Baird was shot in his chest. Both men have since recovered from their injuries. Lezama was reportedly pursuing a man who had snatched his gold chain from his neck.
Lezama will reappear in court on May 11, when a state attorney from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions is expected to be appointed to prosecute his case.
About the Bail (Amendment) Act of 2015
The legislation, which was passed by both Houses of Parliament in March, took effect on Wednesday when it was signed by President Anthony Carmona.
It denies bail for 120 days to repeat offenders accused of firearm possession, to people accused of using firearms in the commission of violent crimes and to those accused of gang-related crimes. The accused may only apply to a High Court Judge for bail once the four-month period expires.