By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

AN 18-year-old high school student, who spent over a week in prison for violating the national curfew, was released yesterday thanks to a few local attorneys who paid his $500 fine.

Deon Duverny appeared in Magistrates Court on August 12 after police found him and his cousin driving on the streets of New Providence on August 10, in violation of the national curfew.

Duverny, who claims he has no previous convictions, said he was shocked when the magistrate told him that he either had to pay a $500 fine the same day or face prison for the curfew infraction.

He said he was consequently imprisoned at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services after he was unable to pay the fine. The teen said he had no guardians present with him during the court hearing as his parents are no longer alive.

“He said $500 today or prison,” he told reporters yesterday. “I mean I was on the wrong after all but that shouldn’t mean that I have to pay $500 to be on the road.

“...Two (officers) were willing to let me go because they understand the situation I was in. I was carrying my cousin home and we probably was going to stop in the village (in Cowpen Road) for something to eat.”

Asked if he told the court he was a high school student, Duverny replied: “He look like he didn’t care.”

Describing his experience in prison yesterday, the high school senior said the ordeal was an unpleasant one, saying essential items like water were not always readily available. He also said inmates are only fed twice a day.

“It ain’t nice. That’s for sure,” he said. “The other day, a guy fall off a top bunk in the prison. They called (the police) for the longest and when the guy decided to finally come, he was taking his time like he’s modelling.

“And they don’t always give you things like like water and stuff. It ain’t making no sense.”

Having experienced the frightening ordeal, the 18-year-old said he is extremely thankful to be out of prison. He is set to graduate high school next year.

Those present at court for Duverny’s release from prison included attorneys Bjorn Ferguson, Claude Hanna and Damian White, who all assisted to have his court fines paid.

Speaking to reporters yesterday, Mr Hanna said when the group learned about Duverny’s situation, they decided to lend a helping hand.

Calling the system flawed, Mr Hanna said the COVID-19 curfew regulations have been “disproportionately” placing a burden on those less fortunate in the Bahamian society.

“We are a part of a conglomerate of lawyers who have decided to step in to help those persons who are less fortunate and had an unfortunate circumstance under this pandemic situation with the various regulations and orders,” he said.

“We learnt of Mr Duverny’s ordeal. He was incarcerated for some seven days and we thought that given the circumstances, we put the necessary funds to pay his fine so that he could be released, and this is just one of the many situations where these regulations are disproportionately putting a burden on the less fortunate of the society.

“Here is a young man still in high school and being incarcerated for the inability to pay a $500 fine. We think the system can do better than that.”

Mr White also lamented the unfairness surrounding Duverny’s sentence, suggesting the teen should have been given more time to pay his fine.

He said: “It’s been other clients that we have represented individually who had been given an opportunity to pay a fine over a period of time. In particular him being a high school student, I feel like in this case the ball was kinda dropped because where would he have the means to pay a fine if he was not working?

“I don’t know if the court was not aware or what took place but as soon as we heard, we got information of his situation and we thought it necessary to intercede on his behalf.”

For his part, Mr Ferguson called the entire process “unconstitutional”.

“Like Mr Hanna said, it’s disproportionately impacting the weak among our society. It is clear the weak among our society is hurt. The young man basically criminalised before he’s even enjoying life. This can’t be The Bahamas that we want for us. It just can’t.

“And so fundamentally, constitutionality, we say it’s unconstitutional,” Mr Ferguson said.

Mr White also added: “If we had not intervened to pay this fine, school is about to start in a month’s time and he would’ve been incarcerated which would greatly affect his ability to even properly graduate in a timely manner that he is supposed to be graduating.”

The attorneys said they will also try to get Duverny’s cousin released from prison, who is still currently at BDCS.