Ashley Newbold, convicted of the murder of Club 601 manager Joyanne Cartwright, appeared in the Court of Appeals yesterday in an attempt to have his sentence quashed. Mr. Newbold’s action is the second such attempt on the part of convicted murderers in less than a week.
Newbold was convicted at the age of 29 for the murder of Ms. Cartwright and sentenced to death on March 13, 2001.
He appeared before the Court of Appeal yesterday but the matter was adjourned.
Speaking for the prosecution Neil Braithwaite of the Attorney General’s Office asked the Justices of Appeal for an adjournment as the Director of Prosecutions, Bernard Turner, who is the assigned to represent the Crown in this case, was absent.
Mr. Braithwaite said Mr. Turner was unable to attend due to “intense personal turmoil”. It is not clear if the turmoil was created by gansters supporting Mr. Newbold in an effort to delay the case and manipulate the judicial process, as is so often done in the Bahamas.
It is widely believed that Mr. Newbold is the “fall guy” for Obie Pindling, son of the former Prime Minister, who many believe to be the real killer of Ms. Cartwright . Mr. Pindling was named as the killer in a confession made by Mr. Newbold to the police which was read in court during Newbold’s trial. The confession was later recanted by Newbold.
Ms. Cartwright, 24, was found shot to death at her Sea Beach Estates condominium located at the Western end of New Providence island on December 26, 1996.
Following a five year probe, rife with high level police and political cover-ups, Newbold, “being concerned with another” was charged with murdering the nightclub manager.
Before adjourning yesterday, the justices allowed Mr. Newbold to state his application for the removal of his lawyer Kenneth Toppin of the Bannister and Company law firm.
The appellant said he would like to retain Michael Hanna, to whom he had spoken earlier that day, as his attorney.
Mr. Toppin, who had defended Newbold in the high-profile Supreme Court murder trial, in March 2001, asked the court to be allowed to withdraw as Newbold’s representative.
In another bizzare aspect of this case, Mr. Toppin had never been retained by Newbold, nor had he been assigned to him by the Court of Appeal’s registrar, but as his signature was on the appeal document, procedure was followed and Mr. Toppin was obligated to to represent the appellant.
Newbold will be remanded in custody until his new court date in September.
Related article: Cartwright Case Remains Open
