BUCHANAN, Grand Bassa − The Buchanan Magisterial Court has sentenced Stanley Moore to 11 months in prison for negligent homicide of his fiancée.
On May 16, Stipendiary Magistrate Vasco M. Brown found Moore guilty of the crime at the close of a trial that began on February 26.
Moore was charged by the Grand Bassa detachment of the Liberia National Police following the mysterious death of his fiancée, Comfort Glay. Glay’s corpse was later discovered on the morning of February 20 in New Buchanan.
According to an eyewitness account, Glay was heard screaming around 11:00 p.m. on February 19 while running from Moore’s residence and calling for help.
“After a few minutes, we saw the woman running in our yard crying that something was in her throat,” said Janjay Jimmy, the woman in whose yard Glay’s body was found. “She was asking us to put a finger in her throat, but we refused because we didn’t know her from anywhere, and also, we were avoiding trouble.”
Jimmy explained that she heard the deceased yelling from the top of the hill that her boyfriend was killing her and that he should be held responsible if anything happened to her. She said the victim, however, did not call the name of the boyfriend but kept crying and breathing faster until she fainted and went silent.
Nathan Song, the 14-year-old son of Glay, explained that some minutes after 10:00 p.m. on the night of February 19, his mother informed him that her fiancé, Moore, had called her to see him at his home in New Buchanan’s Block C community.
Later that night, Song said he was informed that his mother was lying somewhere in the community. He recalled immediately running to the location, where he saw his mother lying helpless on the ground and foaming from her mouth and nostrils. He immediately took her phone and tried to make a call until Moore, the boyfriend, arrived at the scene.
The following morning, a 15-man jury was set up to examine Glay’s body. The jury concluded that there was foul play. Moore was arrested and kept in a police cell while they investigated the matter.
Days later, a group of women stormed the Buchanan police headquarters, calling for a speedy investigation. The women, some of whom were marketers, teachers, and caregivers, were heard screaming and chanting slogans like “We want justice” and “We are tired of being maltreated and abused by men.”
Their spokesperson, Janjay Lloyd, who is the leader of the New Buchanan Community women, said they were resolved to remain unbending until justice was served in Glay’s death.
The Grand Bassa police commander, William Johnson, promised the women that he would pressure the investigators to speed up the investigation and provide findings quickly. At that moment, the case had not yet been forwarded to court, as pieces of evidence were still being gathered, Johnson said. He applauded the women for their peaceful action and assured them that justice would prevail.
The women threatened to disrupt the graduation of the Grand Bassa University on February 24 if they failed to see advanced legal proceedings. Before the graduation, Moore was formally charged and forwarded to court for prosecution.
Negligent homicide is a felony of the third degree. Sentencing for the crime cannot exceed one year.
Meanwhile, Glay’s family promised to file an appeal to the 2nd Judicial Circuit Court, as they believe Moore should have received a harsher punishment.
Featured photo by Alexander Musa, Jr.
