But what was it that brought Hartin to tears? Was it the gravity of a guilty plea, or the pressure from her attorneys to make a decision immediately following her sentence indication?
Well, this morning 7News learned that it wasn't either of those things and it in fact had to do with the additional evidence that DPP Cheryl-Lyn Vidal entered right before the plea. Among that evidence was a statement from Hartin's former partner Andrew Ashcroft, one that allegedly spoke to his opinions on her proficiency with a gun and her state of inebriation on the night in question.
It's all part and parcel of the package that Justice Sandcroft will have to consider ahead of sentencing. And while he has almost guaranteed a non-custodial sentence, we have to wonder if that is completely set in stone.
Cherisse Halsall put that question to Attorney Seth Weinstein this morning:
Cherisse Halsall:
"And every Belizean wants to know this, we heard yesterday that the judge had pretty much committed himself to a non-custodial sentence, based on your experience of Commonwealth law is there any room, where this judge after reading a victim statement from the family then make a decision to say, I think because of the weight of this Victim statement this woman should do some minor time maybe even one year in prison?"
Seth Weinstein, Attorney, Greenspan, Humphrey Weinstein, LLP
"Certainly, and I obviously can't speak to Belizean case law, my understanding is that a non-custodial sentence is entirely within the range of prior sentences in Belize and although a victim's impact is a relevant consideration certainly in my experience, I have not and I can only speak from a Canadian viewpoint I have never seen a victim impact statement carry such weight that it would take what would be a very appropriate sentence and take it outside of that range of sentences, so I haven't seen that."
Jasmine Hartin will return to court on May 26th and May 31st for final submissions and sentencing respectively.
