Nassau, BAHAMAS- A magistrate on Monday dismissed a case against businessman Philippe Gagnon after finding that the prosecution’s witnesses had been coached.
The 55-year-old businessman was charged with causing harm to Spencer Charrington, the son of Albany top executive Peter Charrington.
The charge stemmed from an incident at a Moulin Rouge themed New Year’s Eve party held at the resort on January 1 after Philippe’s wife Diana accused Charrington of groping her butt.
However, Mr Gagnon is the only person to face court over the incident since police have failed to act on his wife’s complaint of indecent assault, although she had two witnesses.
Charrington was arrested and quizzed about the incident on April 4 and released pending further investigations. The Gagnons have filed a complaint with the Corruption Unit over the police’s failure to deal with their complaint.
In court, Charrington alleged that he was slapped on his cheek and punched to the stomach after he innocently complimented Mrs Gagnon about her pretty feathered dress.
The theater student at McDaniel College in Maryland, who wore a dress and a feathered headpiece at the party, said he wasn’t sure she heard the alleged compliment, as he denied approaching the 35-year-old from behind and touching her butt, as he’s “not attracted to women.” “I thought it was pretty, I liked the feathers,” he said of Diana’s outfit.
Charrington, who wore pants and a long sleeved shirt during his testimony, insisted that Mr Gagnon, a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, didn’t tell him to go away three times before he slapped him on the dance floor.
Charrington said that he was at the party with four of his friends, whom he was unable to name when pressed by defense lawyer Bjorn Ferguson.
Explaining his inability to name his friends, Charrington said, “There was a lot going on that night sir.”
He glanced at his parents throughout his testimony and they appeared to gesture to him.
According to Charrington, there were other women on the dancefloor, whom he also complimented on their attire throughout the night, before the assault took place.
He said he didn’t compliment the other two women, who were near to Mrs Gagnon,
Charrington claimed that his assailant was wearing red, white and blue, though pictures of the event show Gagnon in a red vest.
He said Albany’s head butler Lavardo Bethel intervened and escorted Gagnon and his wife were escorted from the premises.
Charrington he went to the hospital and was given an injection for pain. According to him, he had immense swelling to his jaw that affected his ability to eat for several weeks. Notably, Charrington didn’t claim to suffer any injuries as a result of the alleged punch to the stomach.
Bethel testified that Gagnon was wearing a yellow vest when he hit Charrington. He also said that there were no other women on the dance floor.
COACHING WITNESS
But Magistrate Algernon Allen Jr suspended proceedings after someone in the gallery corrected Bethel when he said that Peter Charrington had been hit during cross-examination.
Ferguson complained, ‘Your worship the witness must not be under any duress. His evidence should be voluntary. His employers are in the gallery and it appears he is under intense pressure to give particular testimony.’
The offender was identified as Peter Charrington, who apologized profusely when rebuked by the magistrate.
After a brief adjournment for legal arguments, the matter was thrown out.
Allen said, “As a consequence of the allegations made and what the court has seen, it appears the witnesses may have been influenced while giving testimonies. That would be prejudicial to the defendant Philippe Robert Gagnon.”
‘As a consequence, Philippe Robert Gagnon is discharged. The prosecution can appeal my decision.’
Spencer burst into tears at the magistrate’s ruling and had to be comforted by his mother.
Prior to the dismissal, attorney Romona Farquharson, who held a watching brief for the Charringtons, was admonished to stop coaching the police prosecutor.
She was seen passing him notes with questions and at times interrupted Ferguson.
A lawyer holding a watching brief is merely an observer and does not actively participate in proceedings.
