9 months ago
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L-R: Omar Newell, PNP candidate for Central St. Mary and attorney, Paula Llewellyn, Director of Public Prosecutions, Isat Buchanan, attorney
Attorney-at-law and PNP candidate for Central St. Mary, Omar Newell, is facing major backlash online for saying he now knows why the country’s chief prosecutor, Director of Public Prosecutions King’s Counsel Paula Llewellyn, has gone after one of Vybz Kartel’s lawyers, Isat Buchanan.
The attorney’s statement came a day after the United Kingdom-based Judicial Committee of the Privy Council cited juror misconduct and quashed Kartel’s conviction for murdering Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams.
Robian Williams reports.
Mr. Newell made the allegation on social media site X on Thursday. he posted “We can now see why DPP went after Isat.”
Newell, who is the Junior Opposition Spokesperson on Commerce, Science and technology, was reprimanded online by a Jamaican prosecutor, Adley Duncan.
Mr. Duncan told Newell, “This is an extraordinarily disgraceful, borderline libelous comment, particularly from an aspirant to high public office.”
Scores of users on X accused Newell of being “disgusting, reckless, and classless.”
One blogger told Newell, “You really should delete this bro. That’s one of the reasons why I have little respect for you politicians. We have an adversarial legal system. The DPP didn’t “go after Isat” and I hope you are not justifying Isat’s extremely disrespectful and misogynistic remark.”
Other social media users called on PNP President Mark Golding and General Secretary, Dr. Dayton Campbell, to reign in Newell.
Today, the PNP for Central St. Mary appeared to scoff at the backlash. In a follow-up post on X, he wrote, “Post just drop in the WhatsApp groups.”
Newell’s fellow attorney and comrade, Isat Buchanan, was recently sanctioned by the Disciplinary Panel of the General Legal Council, GLC.
Buchanan was sanctioned for quoting Kartel’s lyrics, which appeared to tell the DPP and another senior prosecutor who marshalled evidence during his trial, Jeremy Taylor, to perform lewd sexual acts.
Buchanan apologised for his conduct and resigned as Chairman of the PNP’s Human Rights Commission after he faced an avalanche of criticism for his remark.
He was sanctioned after he was referred to the GLC’s Disciplinary Panel by its Chairman and veteran attorney, King’s Counsel, Denise Kitson.
Buchanan has since appealed a two-year suspension from practicing as an attorney, which was handed down by the GLC’s Disciplinary Panel.
When contacted, Mr. Newell declined to comment on the matter.
English (US) ·