36 year-old Antonio Gutierrez, who had been serving 8 years in jail for a rape conviction, is home tonight, after he successfully appealed his conviction at the Court of Appeal which has ordered a retrial.
Gutierrez was convicted back in May of last year in the northern session of the Supreme Court. Justice Herbert Lord presided over a trial in which the complainant was a 16 year-old. She testified in the trial that on August 12, 2011, at a street corner in Orange Walk Town, Gutierrez raped her. Gutierrez gave a dock statement saying that the sex was consensual. The jury in the original trial deliberated for over 2 hours and returned with a guilty verdict by way of a majority, 8 to 1.
Well, today, Gutierrez and his attorney Anthony Sylvestre, got positive results when the Appeal Court judges informed them that the appeal succeeded on 1 out of their 5 grounds. The Court of Appeal found that the trial judge did not properly follow the evidence act to direct the jury.
Crown Counsel, Javier Chan had no defense against this ground and, so, the Court allowed the appeal, set aside the conviction and the sentence, and ordered a retrial. Gutierrez was released on bail of $4,500.
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