Forensic psych shortage stalls Mario Deane case
Published:Wednesday | May 22, 2019 | 12:22 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
The case against Marvin Orr and Adrian Morgan, the inmates charged with 2014 murder of Mario Deane, hit yet another snag in the St James Circuit Court on Monday.
Dr Myo Kyaw Oo, who was expected to be in attendance to answer questions from the defendants’ attorneys with regard to psychiatric reports on the mental state of Orr and Morgan, failed to show, leaving High Court Justice Dale Palmer with no choice but to set a new mention date.
The court was told that fresh reports for Orr and Morgan, which were previously requested by their lawyers, would not be ready for another 10 weeks, as the Department of Correctional Services does not employ full-time psychiatrists.
The court was told that Oo could well be overwhelmed by the volume of his workload, as he is currently the only doctor in Jamaica who is trained in doing forensic psychiatric reports.
In commenting on the lack of trained psychiatrists to provide a crucial court service, Justice Palmer expressed concern that other cases requiring similar reports were being hampered because of the shortage.
“When I learned that Dr Oo is the only doctor (who is trained to do the reports), it seemed unjust to issue a subpoena when he’s the only doctor for the entire island,” said Palmer.
The judge then ordered that Orr and Morgan be remanded until July 29 when the case is again set for mention.
When the case was heard in the St James Circuit Court last September, subpoenas were issued for the doctors who wrote the reports for Orr and Morgan, as the defendants’ lawyers were not satisfied that the documents adequately addressed specific questions about the men’s mental state.
On August 3, 2014, Mario Deane was brutally beaten into a state of unconsciousness while in custody at the Barnett Street Police Station, where he was being held after he was arrested for possession of a ganja spliff. Deane died three days later in hospital without regaining consciousness.
Orr and Morgan, who were also in custody at the Barnett Street lock-up, were later arrested and charged, along with a third inmate, Damion Cargill. In July 2017, Cargill was judged unfit to stand trial and was released into his family’s care.