Allyson Major’s accused killer walks; Min. Musa: it doesn’t end there

Black Immigrant Daily News

Police corporal Kent Martinez, who had been charged with manslaughter by negligence for the shooting death of well-known teacher Allyson Major, was acquitted of all charges on Monday. But the quest for justice is not over, says Minister of Home Affairs, Kareem Musa.

by Khaila Gentle

BELIZE CITY, Mon. July 4, 2022
Corporal Kent Martinez was accused of firing the shot that hit Allyson Major once in the head during a high-speed chase through the streets of downtown Belize City in 2019—ultimately causing the 36-year-old teacher’s death. But following a trial in the Supreme Court this week, the police corporal has been acquitted of all charges.
On Monday, July 4, Supreme Court Justice Ricardo O’Neil Sandcroft found Martinez not guilty of manslaughter by negligence due to insufficient evidence—indicating agreement with the no-case submission that had been made by Martinez’s attorney, Oscar Selgado. Justice Sandcroft directed a jury of nine to return with a not-guilty verdict, stating, “Evidence must be sure so that the prosecution makes you sure. Selgado made a no-case submission that the burden of proof was not met. So, you must return a not guilty verdict.”
This was because ballistic evidence provided by the National Forensic Science Laboratory could not link Martinez to the bullet that caused Major’s death. According to Oscar Selgado, pieces of the bullet that were removed from Major’s body “did not bear sufficient description and information” to be compared to any of the shells that had been recovered at the scene of the shooting.
In response to the outcome of the trial, Minister of Home Affairs, Hon. Kareem Musa has stated that he—much like Major’s friends, family, and a vast percentage of the Belizean populace—is extremely disappointed.
“It certainly opens up a wound which has not at all healed. And to hear that, in fact, this officer who was charged is now able to walk free and that the family has not received the justice that they deserve, like I said, it’s very disappointing to hear,” said Hon. Musa in an interview on Tuesday.
Musa pointed out the fact that a critical piece of evidence had been deemed inadmissible in the trial: surveillance footage that allegedly shows an officer pointing his weapon in the direction of Allyson Major. As a result, the Minister is hoping that the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) can find grounds for the case to be appealed.
“I would hope that the DPP would explore the possibility and take a very hard and serious look to see whether there was an error in law in denying the admissibility of that particular piece of evidence, which, like I said, would be very crucial in a case like this,” he stated.
During the interview, Minister Musa condemned the killing of Major along with the fact that, apart from being charged criminally, Corporal Martinez had not faced disciplinary action—nor had any of the other officers who were involved in the shooting.
“There is also the issue of the tribunal disciplinary hearing possibly against not just one but several officers, because I have no doubt in my mind, not a single doubt, that the police killed Allyson Major—not a doubt in my mind. I do not think a civilian was standing on the street side that day and fired a shot at Allyson Major. I do not think that,” said Hon. Musa, who hopes that the police can continue to investigate the matter internally.
On July 16, 2019, Allyson Major was shot once in the head while driving his vehicle as he was chased by police officers down Regent Street in Belize City.
According to court papers, the police had reported that a “burgundy double-color van” was seen on George Street and that, upon following the van, they observed the driver throwing packages out of the vehicle. A chase ensued, during which shots were fired. Shortly after, the van crashed into a bus near the Swing Bridge, and Allyson Major was found inside, bleeding from the back of the head. He was later transported to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH) but died a day later on Wednesday, July 17. No drugs or guns were found in his possession.
Several days later, Corporal Kent Martinez was arraigned and charged with manslaughter following an investigation by the Office of the DPP, which reportedly found that the bullet that caused Major’s death came from Martinez’s 9mm service weapon.
Major’s family is currently awaiting a date for a civil suit being filed against the Government of Belize for the unlawful killing. Hon. Kareem Musa—who was previously the attorney representing the family in the suit—has said that, regardless of this most recent verdict, it is not too late for Martinez, as well as the other officers who were involved in the incident, to face disciplinary action:
“The question is, why did the department not take any action back then three years ago against this officer—or these officers? Like I said, it was not just one officer chasing after Allyson Major—maybe it was one officer who shot him, but several vehicles were in chase of Allyson Major that day, and so we have to look at that and to see who should be charged. It’s not too late for that—to charge them tribunally. Because the last message that I would want to send, even though this did not happen under our term in office, the last message that I would want to send as Minister is that it is okay for you to kill someone unjustifiably like this and then the following day be able to walk on the streets in your uniform again. That is not acceptable,” he said.
Back in 2019, Corporal Martinez was represented by attorney Richard “Dickie” Bradley, who had the following to say:
“When things like that happen, the decent thing to do in our society is that the authorities are to publicly apologize for the loss of life. They should not put the family through any lengthy court proceedings…pay compensation to the family…for losing a father and a husband. That is the proper, decent thing to do.”
The court verdict, which has proven devastating to the Major family, comes just a few days before the first anniversary of the murder of another civilian at the hands of a police officer. On July 14, 2021, teenager Laddie Gillett was shot and killed while on a beach in Placencia, allegedly by police officer Kareem Martinez. That officer was dismissed and is awaiting trial.

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