By Never Garmah Lomoh
The 9th Judicial Circuit in Gbarnga, Bong County has dismissed and denied Rev. Dr. Samuel K. Karyeah of the St. John United Methodist Church and Dean of the Gbarnga school of theology motion to admit to bail.
According to court, the law provides that rape for the purpose of bail is a capital offense which is not billable in Chapter 13, section 13.1 of the Criminal procedure law.
It further says illness of the defendant where offense is tribal is satisfied on Investigation that a person in custody for the commission of an offense is in such physical condition that continued confinement of such person in the place where where he is confined would result in his death or permanent serious injury to his health, the court may at any time before sentence is commenced, order the removal of such person to some other place of confinement where his health may be better preserved or may admit him to bail if the confinement will endanger his life.
The court says as regard proof being evidence and presumption being great, Chapter 13, section 13.1 of the Criminal procedure law provides that after indictment for such an offense, the burden is on the defendant to show that proof is not evidence and presumption is not great.
In the instance case, the movant or Defendant Karyeah did not convince the court by documentary evidence or otherwise the contrary.
The court in it’s ruling into the motion to admit to bail said, defendant Karyeah didn’t also convinced the court in such grave medical condition that warrant him bail.
As to showing that proof is not great, the court says file before them showed that on July 6,2020, a true bail was presented by the grand jury of Bong County thereby indicting Rev. Dr. Samuel K. Karyeah and the defendant has shown to the court that proof is not evidence and presumption is not great, the Court found it impossible to accept the defendant argument.
The court therefore after listening to argument pro and con, the court hereby denied the defendant motion to admit to bail.
In the main time, the clerk of court was ordered to communicate with the prison superintendent to furnish this with preliminary report on the present health condition of defendant Karyeah.
Defendant Karyeah age 54 through his legal Cllr. Mohammed Golafallay filed a seven counts motion on April 6,2020, to admit his client Rev. Karyeah to bail dues to medical condition that he failed to proved in court during the hearing of the motion.
In Count two of his motion, defendant Karyeah avers that during his detention and Investigation at the Bong County police detachment, due to poor health, he was allowed to seek medical attention and during his treatment in Monrovia, he was diagnosed by cardiologist that he has a heart problem and he should immediately start treatment. While on the treatment, he was forcibly removed from hospital and taken to Gbarnga, Bong County and charged him with statutory rape.
Further to count three above, movant or defendant says, that all person accused of a crimes have the right to bail under the law especially where the accused is sick and need medical attention.
He further quoted Chapter 13 section 13.1 of the Criminal procedure law which states a person in custody for a commission of a capital offense shall before conviction be entitled as of right be admitted to bail unless the proof is evidence and the presumption is great.
In resistant thereto, state lawyers filed a six counts resistant out of which counts three and four was traversed. State lawyer or respondent in the case informed court that defendant Karyeah sought medical treatment at the Admadiya Muslim clinic on 10th Street where he was diagnosed of enteric fever(Typhoid) for which he was placed on treatment from March 26-30,2020 and said medical report was displayed in court.
The United Methodist pastor church is in court for allegedly Raping a 15 year old girl student of his scholarship program.
The alleged perpetrator started sexually abusing the survivor at age 14 into separate locations in Gbarnga, Bong County and his arrest, he was immediately suspended by the United Methodist Church in Liberia for tim indefinite until he can exonorate himself from the matter.
Defendant Karyeah was indicted during the May term A. D. 2020.
