KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent, CMC – A High Court judge Friday sentenced a former journalist to life imprisonment after he was found guilty of the 2017 murder of a banker.
Justice Brian Cottle sentenced Junior Jarvis, 50, for the February 14, 2017, murder of banker Randy Lawrence, 39. The judge noted that in the absence of parole laws in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Jarvis would have to spend the rest of his life in jail.
But he said that convicted people must maintain their humanity and ordered that Jarvis be brought back to court after 30 years to assess whether he is sufficiently rehabilitated to be released.
If the court concluded that he was not sufficiently rehabilitated, Jarvis would return to prison for three more years before another review. This would continue until he is rehabilitated or dies.
On November 28, last year, a jury found Jarvis guilty of murder and seven other counts, including one count each of attempted murder on Arisha Pompey, his then-girlfriend, and Josette Smith, her cousin.
The court heard that Jarvis shot and killed Lawrence early on Valentine’s Day. A post-mortem later showed he had received three gunshots, including two from behind.
Jarvis then left the shooting scene and went to Pompey and Smith’s apartment.
He forced his way into the house, fired a shot at each of them, and further struck Pompey with the gun, injuring her.
Jarvis then took Pompey to where he had parked his vehicle, some distance from the scene of the murder and even further from Pompey’s home. But Jarvis was arrested by police officers after Pompey held on to the door of a supermarket.
Jarvis was found with his licensed firearm, which was loaded with ten rounds, and there was another magazine containing ten games and loose matches in a backpack that he was carrying.
The judge said that Jarvis had suspected that Pompey was having an affair with Lawrence and had confronted him, both in person and via social media, but was rebuffed and ridiculed.
The night before the killing, a police officer intervened as Jarvis confronted Lawrence at the restaurant, and later that same night, the police searched for Jarvis but did not find him.
Jarvis set upon Lawrence the following morning, and he told the court that he acted in self-defense as he believed that Lawrence was shooting at him, and in his confusion, he went to the home of Smith and Pompey with the firearm in his hand.
Jarvis said that Pompey had tried to relieve him of the firearm, and it went off and further stated that it was only at the supermarket that Pompey said she did not want to go with him.
The judge said several spent shells and a projectile from Lawrence’s body were recovered from the scene. They were ballistically matched to Jarvis’ gun.
No other gun was found at the scene.
Jarvis’ cell phone, which was forensically examined, contained a selfie of Jarvis with Lawrence’s car in the background. It was time-stamped the morning of the killing.
The judge said that Pompey and Smith also gave different versions that contradicted Jarvis’.
Jarvis has five children, the youngest being 17 years old.
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