After ore than 12 years and counting behind bars the UK Privy Council Q U A S H E D the previous conviction and sentence to 32 years before parole for Vybz Kartel and co-accused. Freedom is closer than ever for the Jamaican superstar!
Currently Vybz Kartel and co-accused are not yet free but bail is on the horizon after the historical win with Thursday ruling by the Judicial Committee of the UK Privy Council that doing so VOIDED the previous murder conviction and remanded back to the Jamaican Court of Appeal for a re-trial to be considered or to set the men free already.
Speaking to the Jamaican press Vybz Kartel’s lawyer Isat Buchanan says he is still working on Kartel’s case and his next step will be to SEEK BAIL for Adidja Palmer. The same concept has been expressed by Shawn Storm’s lawyer Bert Samuels that added all the men involved are now eligible for bail.
As for when bail could come Buchanan admitted he could not exactly predict right now when Kartel, real name Adidja Azim Palmer, will be released on bail but he added that:
“myself, Miss LaBeach, John Clarke and all his attorneys will definitely seek bail,” adding : We await the orders from the court to be sent to the Court Of appeal and will take it from there. I know that the Privy Council acts expeditiously given the fact that it was an expedited hearing so we will get word from the court. That’s all I can say right now”.
This past Thursday Vybz Kartel’s ruling “broke the internet”, making headlines in a lot of major international networks, from BBC, Fox5News, NY Post with thousands of people all over the world following the case and waiting & hoping for many years for a positive outcome!
In Jamaica spontaneous celebrations erupted in Portmore, in St Catherine and of course online where thousand left comments, congratulations and sent love to the Worl’ Boss.
At the Tower Street Adult Correctional Centre, formerly know as General Penitentiary where Kartel is being currently held, there was also a celebration with inmates banging and shouting out multiple time World Boss World Boss, making plenty of noise! People also were spotted outside cheering!
Vybz Kartel himself spoke on the outcome in a statement to FOX5NY journalist Lisa Evers on Thursday evening, Kartel shared his thoughts on the recent developments and his outlook on the future legal proceedings.
“I feel victorious in this very moment as the Privy Council in their infinite wisdom, understood the assignment and remedied the situation by quashing my conviction!” he began the statement.
“I am now back to being an innocent man in the eyes of the law. A grave injustice was done to me and my co-accused in the original trial and subsequently Isat Buchanan, John Clarke, David Hislop, Hugh Southey, Julian Malins, and Allesandra Labeach pleaded my cause and my cries were heard in the land’s highest court.”
In his statement, Kartel expressed confidence that the Court of Appeal, which previously upheld his conviction, would now do the “right thing.”
“I am also very confident that the court of appeal in Jamaica will do the right thing in the name of equity, fairness, and justice and free us. Some people have expressed their concern to me that a retrial may be ordered but to them, I say (albeit with my limited knowledge of the law) ‘what is there to retry?’”
Kartel’s statement continued: “
And unsafe by analysis from forensics experts hired by my team from the United Kingdom! Not only that, police officers in the original trial also admitted that they tampered with text messages using the Cellebrite machine and even admitted that they used the cellphones which were in evidence to make phone calls and send text messages to various numbers including my then lawyer, my baby’s mother, and to my music publisher.”