Luisto Eusebio Hernandez has been sentenced to 21 years in prison for shooting his father-in-law twice, over a heated dispute that started about the right way to feed Hernandez’s young child a mango.
Appearing via video link from Northward Prison on Tuesday, 11 July, Hernandez listened as Justice Roger Chapple handed down the lengthy prison sentence.
Hernandez, 28, was convicted by a jury last month of attempted murder and possession of an unlicensed firearm, a little over a year after he opened fire on his father-in-law at their tenement yard in George Town.
“I accept that the complainant threw a glass bottle that shattered and injured this defendant’s young daughter,” said Chapple. “This served as a degree of provocation… that added fuel to the fire of an already heated dispute between the men.”
During the trial, the victim told the court that Hernandez got in his car, left the scene and returned a short time later.
“You returned armed with a loaded unlicensed firearm and with murderous intent,” said Chapple, as he addressed Hernandez. “I don’t accept that the complainant’s actions were a significant degree of provocation, as you had already made threats to kill him, and you had six to 10 minutes, which was ample time for the provocation to subside.”
Chapple began with an initial starting point of 20 years, with a range of 17 to 25 years in prison. However, he increased the starting point to reflect the fact that Hernandez left the scene and returned, which suggested premeditation; the weapon was an unlicensed firearm; and the ease with which Hernandez was able to get his hands on the gun, coupled with his four previous convictions for assault.
“The fact that he was able to retrieve the weapon and return it to the criminal hands from whence it came is a reliable indication of his lifestyle and criminal connections,” said Chapple. “It is also worth noting that the gun was never retrieved and was connected to other serious crimes… such as the murder of a former prison officer.”
Chapple reduced the sentence to 21 years to reflect the minor mitigating circumstances, the most notable of which was Hernandez’s young age.
Chapple also imposed a 12-year sentence for the illegal gun and ordered that it run concurrent to the murder charge, leaving Hernandez with a final sentence of 21 years in prison.
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