‘Emancipation’ Day for Vybz Kartel

At 5:29 p.m., the right foot of dancehall star Adidja ‘Vybz Kartel’ Palmer connected with Tower Street in downtown Kingston. It was his first step into freedom from prison and into the welcoming embrace of a crowd of supporters chanting his name.

The smartphones were up, and many persons went live from the scene, bridging the gap for those around the world who craved real-time updates.

After his release, Kartel had very few words and kept it simple, leaving a message for the youths.

“One thing me want tell the youths dem, stay out a f$&%#@*,” Kartel said.

Children, many of whom were seeing Kartel in the flesh for the first time, and their parents were outside in the sun, where they waited for almost three hours for the man of the moment to present himself.

While the two white stretch Hummer limousines took up position outside the prison walls at the Tower Street Correctional Facility, it heightened anticipation as the large crowd kept growing.

So as the gathering grew, the military and the police, with heavy -duty armoured vehicles at their aid, started rolling in, taking up position for public safety.

“Free Worl’ Boss! … Free Worl Boss!” The chants got louder as the defence attorneys made their way in and out of the prison.

The process after the court order entails a B-20 form being signed by the court and delivered to the Department of Corrections to begin the process of release.

Isat Buchanan, John Clarke, Iqbal Cheverria, and Alessandra LaBeach interacted with the crowd and gave impromptu updates at the request of fans and media.

“We are just finalising everything to ensure that they can be released today because tomorrow is a public holiday [Emancipation Day]. So if it’s not facilitated for today, then we trying to make sure it doesn’t go past today and end up like Friday or so,” LaBeach said about 5 p.m. yesterday, appeasing those who thought the process was being drawn out.

The excitement at Tower Street began at 2:22 p.m., following the Jamaican Court of Appeal’s ruling that Kartel and his co-appellants should be released.

Some residents walked to the front of the prison while others drove and honked horns, jubilant that the music legend had now been declared a free man.

The pandemonium from inside the prison was evident and permeated the air around Tower Street Adult Facility, more popularly known as GP.

Even the warders who were watching the court proceedings from their quarters were in a frenzy, rushing to the prison when the ruling was handed down.

They lined the streets afterwards, not on duty, but watching as the men they had guarded for the last 13 years walked free to waiting limousines.

Peter Perry, CEO of Perry’s Funeral Home, told The Gleaner that he had been contracted at the last minute to provide transportation services for Palmer and his guests.

The excitement proved too much for one man outside the prison who fainted and had to be be assisted..

The long-anticipated decision was made by a three-judge panel comprising Justices Marva McDonald-Bishop, Paulette Williams, and David Fraser.

Before the ruling, an abbreviated summary was provided for the sole purpose of assisting members of the public with understanding the matter.

Kartel, Shawn ‘Shawn Storm’ Campbell, Kahira Jones, and Andre St John were convicted of the September 2011 murder of Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams.

Lawyers representing the quartet made an appeal to the local Court of Appeal in 2020, but their convictions were upheld.

Their appeal was then taken to the United Kingdom-based Privy Council, and on March 14, 2024, their murder convictions were overturned on the grounds of juror misconduct.

The Privy Council also remitted the case back to the Jamaican Court of Appeal to decide whether there should be a retrial.

The appeal hearing was held on June 10, and the judgment was handed down yesterday, on the final day of the court term.

andre.williams@gleanerjm.com