Death of comatose man ruled an unlawful killing

The coroner’s court has ruled that the 2017 death of Wesley Clarke was an unlawful killing.

“This is the case of a 40-year-old man who was stabbed in the neck, which left him in a vegetative state for four years,” said Magistrate Angelyn Hernandez, as she gave a broard overview of the case to the inquest jury.

Clarke was stabbed while attending an after-party in Windsor Park in June 2012.

“His last words were, ‘Dem kill me now,’ said Detective Inspector Joseph Wright who gave evidence during the hearing.

Wright told the court that Clarke was rushed to the hospital by private car for treatment; he was stabilised, but slipped into a coma, from which he never awoke.

“There was one witness who initially came forward,” said Wright. “The witness told the police that he saw a person stab the deceased. That suspect was eventually charged with attempted murder, at the time because Mr Clarke was still alive.”

The case collapsed after this key witness refused to testify and the trial judge stopped the trial and formally returned a verdict of not guilty on the charges.

The inquest jury’s decision

Magistrate Hernandez told the jury that, when contemplating their verdict, they had to consider whether Clarke’s death was directly connected to the stab wound, or whether there was an intervening act that broke the connection between the stabbing and his passing.

“Perhaps the question that, if answered, would guide you to a verdict is ‘Would Mr Clake, being a normal healthy 40-year-old man, with no previous health complications, have died due to the health problems developed while being in a vegetative state and therefore not related to the stabbing; or were the health problems a direct result of being in the vegetative state and therefore related to the stabbing?’”

After a brief deliberation, the jury returned a unanimous verdict of unlawful killing.