A LAVENTILLE man who has already spent two decades in prison on remand will not have to face a sixth trial. A High Court judge has quashed his indictment for the murder of his uncle in 2000, at Success, Laventille.

Kevon Nurse, also known as Kevon Benoit, has appeared before some 25 judges both for five trials and status hearings, and was expected to face a sixth trial before he challenged the Director of Public Prosecutions' intent to proceed.

In a written decision on Monday, Justice Eleanor Donaldson-Honeywell quashed the indictment against Nurse on the ground of delay.

While she noted there was no constitutionally protected right to a fair trial within a reasonable time, the judge said the failure of the DPP to discontinue the prosecution was unreasonable because of delay, the multiplicity of trials and failed convictions.

She also pointed to the last trial judge’s comments on the inconsistency of the testimony of the main prosecution witness and the prejudice Nurse faced.

“It cannot be ignored that one of the major factors involved in the prejudice to the claimant in the present case is delay. To allow a sixth retrial to proceed and leave the claimant to rely on the safeguards available at trial would not duly address the prejudice he has faced.

“He would remain in detention without conviction and be further prejudiced by additional delays while awaiting the sixth trial."

Donaldson-Honeywell also said the extent of the additional delay might be hard to ascertain owing to the current global pandemic and restrictions preventing jury trials.

The DPP was ordered to pay Nurse’s legal costs for the judicial review claim.

In 2019, Justice Lisa Ramsumair-Hinds ordered a retrial for Nurse after jurors returned deadlocked after four hours of deliberations.

Nurse was before the court for the murder of his uncle Lester Ash on Christmas Day 2000, at Success, Laventille.

Ramsumair-Hinds was the fifth judge before whom Nurse went on trial. He had also appeared in 2000 before Justice Rajendra Narine; in 2003 before Justice Paula-Mae Weekes; before Justice Hayden St Clair Douglas; and again before Justice Alice Yorke-Soo Hon.

His trials before Narine, St Clair Douglas and Yorke-Soo Hon were aborted before they went to the jury for deliberation.

His trial before Weekes led to his conviction on June 18, 2003, but a retrial was ordered when he was successful at his appeal.

Nurse also appeared before at least 20 judges for pre-trial hearings and his case was adjourned either because the judges had to recuse themselves, Nurse was unrepresented or time was required by either side because of the unavailability of witnesses.

In October 2020, Nurse received the court’s permission to proceed with his judicial review claim in which he asked for a review of the DPP's decision to proceed with sixth trial. In asking for the indictment against him to be permanently stayed, he complained that the continued prosecution was an abuse of process.

Nurse complained of the mental anguish he has suffered throughout th