ANTIGUA-State appeals sentence imposed on entertainer.
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC -The prosecution has filed an appeal against the ruling of a High Court judge who imposed […]
Black News 
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC -The prosecution has filed an appeal against the ruling of a High Court judge who imposed an EC$8,000 (One EC dollar=US$0.37 cents) fine on entertainer Harrison Horsford, better known as Jesse Fyah, after he was found guilty of two sexual offenses committed against a young woman in 2020.
The Court ordered Horsford to pay an EC$5,000 compensation award to the complainant following his conviction for serious indecency and an EC$3,000 fine on the charge of indecent assault.
But in its appeal, the state argues that the punishment is unduly lenient and does not reflect the seriousness of the offenses, each carrying a maximum prison term of 5 years.
Harrison Horsford
Horsford had remained in custody since May, when a jury convicted him on both counts after deliberating for less than an hour.
The court was told that on October, 27, 2020, a woman in her early twenties, who had known Horsford for several years in what had been described as a casual relationship, had accepted a lift from Horsford, believing he was taking her home.
Instead, he drove to another location, explaining that he needed to meet someone regarding a billboard. But the court heard no such meeting took place, and that once there, Horsford allegedly began making sexual advances that the complainant repeatedly rejected.
The court heard that he kissed her against her will, grabbed her by the throat as she resisted, exposed and fondled her breasts, and forcibly touched her genital area while telling her she belonged to him.
Despite her repeated pleas to be taken home, Horsford instead ordered her out of the vehicle, leaving her on the roadside.
A passing motorist, who stopped after seeing the complainant, testified that she was crying, visibly shaken and holding her clothing together before asking to be taken to the Johnson Point Police Station, where she made a report.
Horsford denied committing the offenses and, in an unsworn statement from the dock, claimed he had offered the complainant a ride after seeing her standing in the rain. He told jurors they spoke amicably during the journey and that he had even offered to help her secure employment.
He said that the woman had requested EC$3,000 from him, which he refused to provide, and that he had dropped her off without incident. Horsford said he only learned of the allegations later that evening after receiving a Facebook message accusing him of rape. He said he responded by warning that legal action would follow if the false allegations continued.
But the jury rejected Horsford’s version of events and convicted him on both charges.
Justice Ann Marie Smith, in delivering the sentence, said Horsford appeared to believe the complainant’s perceived sexual history entitled him to treat her as he did. The judge rejected that notion, saying that every woman has the right to refuse unwanted sexual advances and that consent must be respected regardless of past relationships or reputation.
