And, turning now to the courts...
Yesterday he fired his attorney, and, today, the Jared Ranguy trial took another bizarre twist when the trial judge, Ricardo Sandcroft recused himself.
That's after the DPP's office agreed to a three month adjournment so that senior counsel Godfrey Smith could become Ranguy's 7th attorney.
Now, Smith had been taken out of the picture yesterday when his junior counsel Hector terra told the court that he needed 3 months to prepare. Justice Sandcroft was firm that it could only be a one month adjournment - and so Justice Sandcroft today reconvened the matter to appoint yet another attorney for Ranguy. That's Leslie Hamilton, but he had to recuse himself because of a conflict of interest. Turns out he is close friends with the family of the deceased.
And then, when the judge heard from Ranguy at around 12, he begged the court to allow Godfrey Smith to be his attorney. Justice Sandcroft decided to allow the 3 month adjournment - once the DPP's office agreed - which they did. When news of that came back to the court, the judge dropped a bombshell, announcing, quote, "I am not comfortable with how things have played out." End quote.
And the family of Karen Skeen Vellos, Robert Vellos and Teena Beth Skeen is even more uncomfortable. Karen's brother, Rene is the designated family spokesperson and he told us that their heart dropped when the judge announced that he was withdrawing from the case:
Jules Vasquez
"It must be so frustrating to have heard in court that the judge is recusing himself. That means you go back to square one."
Rene Skeen, Brother of Karen
"Jules, I'm lost for words. I've never ever heard something like this. In this country. I'm not saying it hasn't happened before. I've never heard about it before. One of the sad things is I think this is our second or third judge, by the way."
"This judge recused himself today because he feels like Jared Ranguy is manipulating the system."
"How professional that gentleman is and had to say after he told us today, I'm a praying man and I have to recuse myself from this case. Jules, our heart gra, because he was one of the guy that makes me and my family believe or try to believe, in the justice system. Now, I'm not gonna lie to you. I don't know."
And that bewilderment extends to Ranguy's new attorney Godfrey Smith. Skeen and the family can't understand why the Senior Counsel would want to take up his case.
Rene Skeen, Brother of Karen
"This Is the seventh attorney we're gonna deal with. He fired so far, six attorneys. So whenever you come to court after, by the way, this trial was supposed to start about three years or so after the alleged killing, okay. And everytime we go to court, he just fired the attorney. You fired. I don't want you to represent me. Our judicial system in Belize then have to go back, rehire another attorney. Give him that privilege to take advantage of us, Jules, the victim. Look, it's not about me, it's not about my family, it's about the victims that died. And hence the reason I keep saying, all we want is justice. That's why our prayer and our hope that the justice system works, not because you are this quote unquote big attorney."
Jules Vasquez
"Mr. Smith has written in a recent book that he believes the case may involve Automatism, sleepwalking, basically, that the man might have been in an unconscious state and just walked and did these things all across the house. When you hear of that, how do you all feel as a family?"
Rene Skeen, Brother of Karen
"Jules, this is not a laughing matter, but to me it's a joke. I mean, I don't want to get into the details. Uh uh. It's even hard for me to be here talking right now, but let's just see a weapon was used. I own a weapon when I shoot my weapon, dude, you will wake up if you are sleepwalking by the first shot. Much less multiple shots. Okay? Again, it's not a laughing matter for us, but if he want to sound as smart and as big, and whatever you guys are talking about, he is, he needs to come, lacking for a better word, better than that."
Jules Vasquez
"This has to be a really awful, painful and stressful week for the family."
Rene Skeen, Brother of Karen
"It is, and it's a stressful 10 and a half, almost 10 and a half years. Jules, um, I just want to say it to my family. We gonna stick in here."
We did reach out to Smith for comment, but he is out of the country. Notably, no one from his Marine Chambers Law Chambers was in court today.
Skeen said this is also the second or third judge to take up the case. It will now go to a third or fourth.
The case has been adjourned for June 26, 2023.
