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Woman to get $103,000 in police assault case
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago /Crime & Justice

Woman to get $103,000 in police assault case

From Trinidad Express · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Outcome reported
  • A woman assaulted by a police officer and subsequently prosecuted for two years has been awarded over $103,000 in damages.
  • The High Court found that the officer had "concocted a case" against the woman after an argument outside a nightclub.
  • The court ruled the officer's actions constituted assault, wrongful arrest, false imprisonment, and malicious prosecution.

A woman who was assaulted by a police officer and faced a two-year prosecution has been awarded more than $103,000 in damages after the High Court determined the officer had "concocted a case" against her. The ruling favored Andrea Phillips, who was working as a bouncer at the Stumblin’ Night Club.

Justice Margaret Mohammed found that PC Nicholas Holder and WPC Thomas-Bentham did not identify themselves as police officers when they approached the club's entrance on June 30, 2017. Phillips testified that she repeatedly informed Holder he needed to pay the cover charge, and when he attempted to enter without paying, she blocked him. Justice Mohammed accepted Phillips' account, ruling that Holder's aggressive approach constituted an assault and that Phillips responded by pushing him. The judge also found security manager Derick Timothy, an eyewitness, to be a credible witness who testified that Holder struck Phillips twice in the face.

was not a witness of truth

— Justice Margaret MohammedDescribing the credibility of PC Nicholas Holder's testimony during the High Court judgment.

During cross-examination and by examining police station diary extracts, aspects of Holder's evidence were undermined. Justice Mohammed stated Holder "was not a witness of truth," noting his failure to produce corroborating officers or medical evidence for his claim of a fractured jaw. The judge ruled that Phillips was arrested at the Woodbrook Police Station, not at the club, and that Holder lacked reasonable and probable cause for the arrest or for charging Phillips with obstruction, resisting arrest, or using obscene language.

These charges were dismissed in July 2019 when Holder failed to appear in court on multiple occasions. Justice Mohammed inferred malice from Holder's lack of reasonable and probable cause, considering his conduct at the club entrance, his failure to inform Phillips of the arrest reason, and the manner of her arrest and charging. Phillips was held for approximately 38 hours under what the judge described as "inhumane conditions" in a police cell. The award includes $83,000 in general damages, with an uplift for aggravated damages, and $20,000 in exemplary damages, plus legal costs.

concocted a case

— Justice Margaret MohammedRuling on the actions of PC Nicholas Holder against Andrea Phillips.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Trinidad Express. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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