Firearm offences must be prosecuted in Barbados’ courts more speedily in order for sentences to have the intended deterrent effect.Madam Justice Laurie-Ann Smith-Bovell made that point on Friday as she fined Davey Reynold Prescod, of No. 1 Whitehall, St Michael, for having a .40 calibre pistol and eight rounds of ammunition without a licence on December 10, 2008.The judge pointed out that Prescod’s case only reached the High Court in 2020.“The court must state clearly that the delay in having this matter prosecuted moved the court from the position of a custodial sentence, in light of his previous conviction for ammunition, to a fine,” she stated.
The prosecution believes Davey Reynold Prescod should pay $20 000 for the loaded firearm he was caught with in 2008, but his attorney says it should be closer to $17 000 to account for the age of the matter. Prescod will learn his fate when he returns to the No 4 Supreme Court in February. The businessman, of No. 1 Whitehall, St Michael, had pleaded guilty to having a .40-calibre …