A man is to go to prison for having sex with a 12-year-old girl. The man who was 18 at the time is reported to have forced himself on the girl on the first occasion at her home, after she had given him her cell phone number. Sex occurred again but without force.
The man, 23-year-old Dwight Smith, was sentenced to six years imprisonment at hard labour on each offence in the St Ann Circuit Court on Wednesday, November 2.
A seven member jury deliberated for over two hours and came to a six to one guilty verdict on Wednesday, October 26 following three days of trial.
High court judge Viviene Harris said that it needs to be understood that “children are not to be engaged in sexual activities.”
At Smith’s sentencing on Wednesday, his attorney, explained to Justice Harris that she should consider that this was his client’s first conviction.
The attorney also pointed to the fact that a probation report spoke to his client’s feeling of remorse and that he accepted the verdict. He added that his client spent a year and four months in police custody before bail was offered.
In handing down her sentence, Justice Harris argued that she would consider the points raised by the attorney as a part of the mitigating factors that would lead to a reduction in his sentence.
Smith was later sentenced to six years imprisonment at hard labour on each count. However, the sentences are to run concurrently for six years.
Evidence was outlined at the trial that the girl, who was 12-years-old at the time of the offences, exchanged cell phone numbers with the accused Smith, who had just turned 18.
Both began communicating by text messages and in December of 2011, Smith visited the house of the girl. Smith later forced the girl to have sex with him.
The accused man again visited the girl in January of 2012, where sex between the two again occurred. However, on that occasion the girl was not forced.
The matter was reported by the girl sometime after the alleged sexual act took place.
Investigations followed and Smith was arrested months after the offences.
In addition to the girl giving testimony at the trial, the prosecution relied on evidence from the mother of the girl and the investigating officer.
However, Smith’s defense team argued that the prosecutors failed to provide the cell phone or the messages to substantiate the claims being made.
Despite the claims by the defense, a guilty verdict was delivered by the jurors.
