GREAT BAY – The Court in First Instance sentenced Tony Ricardo York yesterday to a 6-month conditional prison sentence with 2 years of probation and 40 hours of community service for ill-treating a man with a broken broomstick on May 26 of last year. York also has to pay his victim 1,073 guilders in damages to compensate the costs of medical treatment.
York ran into his victim at a snackbar on Longwall Road opposite Vlaun on the morning of May 26. It remained unclear why and how the two men got into an argument. The 33-year old defendant told the court he does not know the victim, while the victim told investigators that he had experienced trouble with the defendant for the past two years, because York suspects him of involvement in a robbery on his person.
According to the victim, York told him, “I am going to kill you within the next fifteen days,” after he had beaten him with the broomstick.
The defendant told the court that his victim was aggressive and that he had feared for his life, but he failed to explained what it was exactly that the victim did to install this level of fear in him.
Prosecutor Nanouk Lemmers dismissed the defendant’s call on self-defense and demanded a 6-month conditional prison sentence with 2 years of probation, 90 hours of community service and financial compensation of his victim.
Attorney Brenda Brooks maintained that her client had had to defend himself against the victim who had been aggressive. “Based on the dossier, the reason for the fight cannot be established,” she noted, asking the court to acquit her client.
Judge Maria Paulides considered the charges proven and said that it is implausible that the defendant was attacked or that he acted out of self-defense.
“The demand by the prosecution is fitting, but I will mitigate the community service considering that this happened a long time ago and that the defendant is a single parent who is taking care of his children.”
