In 2014, four grown men were accused of the attempted murder of a 15 year old boy. It happened in the Lake Independence Area of Belize City where Joseph Vacarro Sr., then 55, now 63, along with his son, Joseph Jr., then 19 now 27, as well as Kenrick Crawford, then 33 now 42, and Rupert Garnett, then 35, now 43, pounced on the teenager. They allegedly stabbed Christian Martinez with an ice pick, and then beat him up and left him for dead on the street. Martinez survived, but today in the Supreme Court, this messy attack had an unexpectedly tidy resolution.
The accused men took ownership of their guilt and pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of use of deadly means or harm.
Under the guidance of their attorneys Hubert Elrington and Oscar Selgado they pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of use of deadly means of harm.
Justice Sandcroft ordered the men to pay the victim compensation of $800 each, by January 19, 2023, for a total of $2,400. The judge explained to the victim that this is "restorative justice", and urged all sides to, quote, "live in harmony with no vengeance in the hearts towards each other." The four accused and Martinez all agreed to a truce as a way forward.
It's a big relief for the accused who could have faced a jail sentence of 10 - 15 years if they were convicted of attempted murder. Our court reporter spoke to Joseh Vacarro Junior, who was the youngest of the accused:
Joseh Vacarro Jr., Agreed to Settlement/Compensation
"Well I feel good the judge is with us right now. On a regular case like this, you wouldn't find a judge that will give you a fine for attempted murder drop to grievous harm and work it out for the ghetto youths them and make peace in the neighbourhood. That is good what the man did and respect to the man for what he did for us."
Justice Sandcroft also ordered that the four defendants attend 3 counseling sessions at the Department of Youth Service under the supervision of Mr. Kevin Cadle. Counseling session was also ordered for the victim.
