SECTION | PAGE ## TITLE FOR THE SPORT/ BUSINESS SKYBOX FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS Barefoot Man releases new music CD Collection of songs is a mix of new and nostalgic hits B3 Culture at the Cinema: ‘Julie’ The 19th century play is brought into the modern age B5 Movies Food & Drink On Stage ■ EVENTS Mixology madness The 100 Women in Finance mixology competition calls for costumes and cocktails. B7 ‘Peppermint’ film lift ed by Jennifer Garner Step aside, Liam Neeson – this woman means business B4 Bloomin’ marvelous local tearoom treats Sandwiches, scones and soups, oh my! B6 Barefoot Man releases new PHO TO: BETTER ANGLE PHO TOGR APHY CAYMAN WEEKENDER Mixology madness EDITORIAL | PAGE 4 AT OFREG: DIGNITY AND DECORUM MUST BE RESTORED High of 90 Low of 78 Smooth with wave heights less than 2 feet. ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 75 CENTS – FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 SEVEN MILE BEACH WATERFRONT WALKERS ROAD TOWN CENTRE PLAZA RED BAY TROPICAL STORM ISAAC ROLLS THROUGH EASTERN CARIBBEAN NEW LAW TARGETS CHILD PREDATORS Star strives for cleaner oceans KAYLA YOUNG kyoung@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Atlantic remained busy Thursday with one hurricane and three named storms moving through the region. One of the storms – Isaac – could impact Cayman as a tropical depression, bringing rains and rough seas on Monday. Residents of the U.S. East Coast hunkered down as Hurricane Florence moved in as a Cat- egory 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of 105 miles per hour. Florence, measuring about 400 miles wide ac- cording to the Associated Press, was expected to give a lashing to the Carolina coast and bring more than 20 inches of rain to some areas. “A life-threatening storm surge is now highly likely along portions of the coastlines of South Carolina and North Carolina, and a Storm Surge Warning is in effect for a portion of this area. The greatest storm surge inundation is expected be- tween Cape Fear and Cape Hatteras,” the U.S. Na- tional Hurricane Center wrote Thursday, warning of life-threatening, catastrophic flooding. Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Isaac passed over the southeastern Caribbean Thursday, bringing heavy rains and life-threatening surf to the region. The islands of Martinique, Dominica and Gua- deloupe had been under a tropical storm warning as the system approached. While Dominica was forecast to receive up to 10 inches of rain in iso- lated areas, the island’s prime minister announced “good news” Thursday as the storm veered away from the Commonwealth nation. “Despite the good news, the prime min- ister urged residents to continue to be vigilant Sex offenders who use cellphones and social media to prey on children are tar- geted in new legislation passed by gov- ernment Wednesday. Changes to the Penal Code create a string of new offenses as- sociated with what the law terms “sexual communication” with a child. Attorney General Sam Bulgin said the law was aimed at predators who use text messages and online forums to “groom” and manip- ulate children with the aim of sexually abusing them. Please see page 9. MICHAEL KLEIN mklein@pinnaclemedialtd.com Next time you go diving or snorkeling, leave your underwater camera behind and take a mesh bag to collect bottles, fishing lines, bits of plastic and other trash that you find. Hollywood actor Adrian Grenier, an avid diver, says he had “some of the most engaging and exciting moments under water” doing these ocean clean ups. Speaking about his passion for the en- vironment at the Caribbean Transitional Energy Conference at the Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa on Thursday, he suggested taking care of Cayman’s beaches and seas was not only something residents should do, but also an area that is ripe for oppor- tunity in terms of ecotourism. “Bring people here not to just sit and be lazy spectators with their cocktail,” he said. “Get them out there and provide op- portunities for them to help clean up the environment. It’s not a chore.” Best known for his starring role as Vincent Chase in the HBO hit series “En- tourage,” Mr. Grenier is an ocean conser- vationist and co-founder of the Lonely Whale Foundation. Rather than tackling big problems like the pollution of the world’s oceans by telling the world that they have to stop using plastics altogether, which would be unrealistic and overwhelming, the founda- tion focuses on one issue: eliminating the single-use plastic drinking straw. Lonely Whale’s #StopSucking cam- paign aims to eliminate the 500 million plastic straws that are used every day in the United States alone, either by not using straws or by substituting plastic with paper, bamboo, metal or glass alternatives. “If we can solve that tiny little piece, the journey is full of possibilities,” Mr. Grenier said. The success of the campaign has prompted major U.S. cities like Seattle and San Francisco to prohibit plastic straws, with New York being the latest city that introduced legislation that will ban their use. Details of teacher pay scale announced MARK MUCKENFUSS mmuckenfuss@pinnaclemedialtd.com Cayman Islands govern- ment school teachers will re- ceive pay raises of between $136 to $640 per month begin- ning this month. The biggest gains are for those at the lower end of the teacher pay scale. Specialist teachers will see less of an increase, on average, than their classroom peers, with those at the top of the spe- cialist schedule getting the smallest increase. Minister of Education Ju- liana O’Connor-Connolly an- nounced last year that she would push for a minimum salary of $5,000 per month for teachers. At the time, she said the minimum salary for teachers was $4,200 per month, a figure reported in the Cayman Compass. The actual minimum was lower, however, at $3,689 per month. The details of the imple- mentation of the pay raise were released by the min- istry on Monday. The increase this year will be from $3,689 to a minimum of $4,329 per month, with a promise, from Ms. O’Connor-Connolly to in- crease it to the $5,000 figure on Sept. 1, 2019. The new minimum salary for a teacher this year is $51,948. Next year, it would be $60,000. The top salary for a teacher PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 10 » Actor Adrian Grenier, right, speaks with moderator Jerry Butler during the Caribbean Transitional Energy Conference at the Kimpton. - PHOTO: MICHAEL KLEIN2 LOCAL&REGIONAL JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Opposition politicians were back in the Legisla- tive Assembly Thursday after staging a one-day walkout on proceedings in pro- test over disciplinary ac- tion taken against Newlands MLA Alva Suckoo. Mr. Suckoo was sus- pended from the House for a day over comments he made that were interpreted by Speaker McKeeva Bush as an attack on his integrity. His fellow Opposition members and Independent legislator Kenneth Bryan all walked out in solidarity with Mr. Suckoo, Wednesday, saying the actions of the speaker were “unjust.” All of the members were back in their seats for the start of proceedings Thursday with the excep- tion of Mr. Suckoo, whose ban from the assembly ran until 11 a.m. He joined the others on the opposition benches at 11 a.m., with the House in Finance Committee to discuss supplementary appropriations to the gov- ernment budget. There was no mention in the morning session of the previous day’s drama, but Opposition members indi- cated at a press conference Wednesday afternoon that the matter was not over. Ezzard Miller, leader of the Opposition, said mem- bers were considering all op- tions, potentially including asking for a vote of no confi- dence in the Speaker. Mr. Suckoo was sus- pended from the House for a day after Premier Alden McLaughlin brought a mo- tion to censure him. Mr. Bush had highlighted a re- mark by the deputy opposi- tion leader that he believed was an attempt to imply he was working with the China Harbour Engineering Com- pany, a Chinese government company rumored to be in- volved with one of the bids to build new cruise piers in George Town harbor. Though Mr. Suckoo did not mention the name of any company or any spe- cific member during the de- bate on Cayman Brac last Thursday, Mr. Bush said it was clear the comment was aimed at him and demanded an apology. Mr. Suckoo de- clined to apologize. The Opposition has ar- gued that Mr. Suckoo did not refer to Mr. Bush by name and that the censure was unjust. They have also high- lighted correspondence by Mr. Bush, in which he indi- cates that he is “introducing” China Harbour to the Be- lize government. Mr. Bush acknowledged he was part of a trade mis- sion to Belize and that he is representing a Chinese government pharmaceu- tical company through his firm WMB International Consulting but denies any business relationship with China Harbour. FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS Award-Winning Caribbean Chicken! Fresh, Healthy & Delicious! West Shore Center, SMB 945.2290 • chicken@chicken2.com® Dine-in!Take-out! Celebrating 25 Years! 25th caymanfirst.com YOUR HEALTH MATTERS. GET HEALTHY WITH US. Call 345-949-7028 | Email askus@caymanfirst.com | Visit caymanfirst.com Opposition back in House after walkout Veterans reward students for learning about heritage JEWEL LEVY jlevy@pinnaclemedialtd.com Government primary schools are being awarded a mahogany shield by the Cayman Islands Veterans Associa- tion for learning about the island’s heri- tage and history. Association Vice President Paul Ebanks came up with the idea after he heard about a mythical shield kept by Edna M. Moyle Primary School, for excellence. While he was not certain if the tale was true or false, he was inspired to use that same idea as a reward to create a healthy competitive spirit among schools. Edna M. Moyle Primary School was the first to receive the shield in 2017. The shield is made from mahogany saved from Mr. Ebanks’s grandfather Er- nest Ebanks’s old house. Stainless steel plates were donated by a North Side businessman to create the nameplate with names of the schools. “At last, the story of the myth- ical shield can be brought to life,” Mr. Ebanks said. “It should only be made from Cayman mahogany,” he added. The shield is given to primary schools for their successful involvement in the “veterans question-and-answer ex- ercise,” and for their competitive spirit. Students who are successful will also be given a shield in the form of a pin for their participation. “It’s about assisting the students in learning a bit more about the past, giving them some information about what hap- pened during those years and about the persons who served,” Mr. Ebanks said. Mr. Ebanks, along with Veterans As- sociation President Andrew McLaughlin, presented Chief Education Officer Ly- neth Monteith with the first pin for government’s participation in the exer- cise at the government education offices on Wednesday. “We always hear our children do not know about our past. How do we teach them about the past so it’s not boring? … This exercise will expand their minds with what the veterans have done for these islands and its heritage,” Ms. Monteith said. She said when she attended school they taught history, but it was from reading a book which made it difficult to identify with. By the veterans going into the schools and speaking directly with students, they hope the students’ competitive nature and curiosity will be piqued enough for them to go and in- vestigate more. “It’s not just sitting in a class- room reading or studying a book … it’s about having those real-life experiences through conversations with the older persons in the community and the ap- preciation of the veterans for what they did for these islands.” She said it’s very important that the older generation impart that knowledge of history to students. The shield is made from mahogany saved from the house of Paul Ebanks’s grandfather. DA SILVA’S CANDIDATE VOWS TO BE HIS OWN MAN IN BRAZIL SAO PAULO (AP) – In his first full day as the presi- dential candidate for Bra- zil’s Workers’ Party, Fer- nando Haddad pledged Wednesday to be his own man if elected and not bow to financial markets or the interests of other countries, including the United States. His promise to be his own man came a day after he replaced former Presi- dent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as the left-leaning party’s candidate in Oc- tober’s election and ap- parently was directed at perceptions that he will be beholden to his jailed friend and political ally. Da Silva was barred from running because of a corruption conviction and on Tuesday his Workers’ Party officially chose Haddad, who was to have been da Silva’s vice presi- dential running mate, to lead its ticket. Haddad’s comment about not bowing to finan- cial markets came after Brazil’s main stock ex- change fell whenever da Silva improved his position in the polls and jumped after his presidential bid was barred. They want a presi- dent “to whom the finan- cial markets can say what they want and what they don’t want. What (U.S. Pres- ident Donald) Trump wants or what Trump doesn’t want,” said the 55-year- old former mayor of Sao Paulo to a crowd. Haddad said unpopular President Michel Temer did not have the authority to stand up to U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, who visited the South American nation in August. Haddad spoke at a meeting with beneficia- ries of education programs started during da Silva’s presidency, between 2003 and 2010. The presidential hopeful was Brazil’s edu- cation minister from 2005 to 2012, the year he was elected mayor. Four years later he lost re-election by a landslide. Asked about the in- fluence da Silva would have if he wins, Haddad said the former president is “an inspiration,” but called his party’s program for the 2018 election of “our Gospel.” “It has my signature and it has Lula’s too,” he said. Brazil Presidential candidate Fernando Haddad Chief Education Officer Lyneth Monteith receives the first pin from veterans Paul Ebanks and Andrew McLaughlin. - PHOTO: JEWEL LEVYThe islands’ most-trusted news source 3 CAYMAN COMPASS • FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 Disclaimer : FIN Grand Cayman features and amenities are based on current development plans and concepts and are subject to change without notice. Some services and amenities are subject to service-based fees or homeowner fees. ART DECO INSPIRED RESIDENCES WITH UNIQUE FIVE-STAR AMENITIES Only 6 residences remain priced from US $1.8M Reserve your private tour and discover the last word in luxury + 1 345 326 1400 fin@fingrandcayman.com Guest suites Owners private Aquariva Private wine locker with sommelier service Personal car service & two parking spaces per residence Full service business centre FIN.cayman fingrandcaymanThe islands’ most-trusted news source 4 – EDITORIAL – Opinion&Letters The Cayman Compass welcomes comments, opinions and viewpoints from readers. Letters to the editor can be emailed to editor@pinnaclemedialtd.com, submitted via www.caymancompass.com, sent by post or hand-delivered to the Compass office. PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY: Caymanian Compass Limited (a subsidiary of Pinnacle Media Ltd) Compass Centre Shedden Road, George Town SEND US YOUR VIEWS OR NEWS: P.O. Box 1365 Grand Cayman KY1-1108, Cayman Islands Telephone: (345) 815-0095 Email: newsdesk@pinnaclemedialtd.com ADVERTISE WITH US: Telephone: (345) 949-5111 Email: sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com Website: www.caymancompass.com PUBLISHERS DAVID R. LEGGE AND VICKI L. LEGGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DAVID R. LEGGE EXECUTIVE EDITOR PATRICK BRENDEL A MEMBER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION “Give light and the people will findtheirownway” Scenario One In Scenario No. One, Premier Alden McLaughlin invites Mr. Linford Pierson, chairman of the board of OfReg, to his office. When he arrives, he asks him to close the door. On his desk are two very visible sheets of stationery. Our premier begins: “Linford, my longtime friend, thank you for coming. I’m sorry for your difficulties at OfReg and, in particular, the leaked minutes of the last board meeting where you threatened to ‘box’ the head of your deputy chairman. The damn press, as you well know, are having their fun with that one. “The real issue, though, is that we cannot have the reputation of OfReg, or of the Cayman Islands, besmirched by such behavior. On my desk, as you can see, are two documents, and you are going to sign one of them before you leave my office. The choice is yours. “The first, which I suggest you sign, is your resigna- tion. Along with it will go a statement that thanks you for your many years of public service to these islands and wishes you the very best in your future endeavors. “The second, should you refuse to resign, is a letter of termination. The Cabinet has authorized me to offer you this choice.” Scenario Two In Scenario No. Two, Mr. Pierson, on his own volition, arranges a meeting with Premier McLaughlin. Neither is looking forward to this meeting, but both, being honor- able men, know the meeting is necessary. In this scenario, Mr. Pierson approaches Mr. McLaughlin, an envelope in hand. “Mr. Premier, my dear friend Alden, it is with the greatest regret that I am submitting my resignation as chairman of the board of OfReg. I realize, given the events of the last few days, that I can no longer lead the organization on its impor- tant mission that lies ahead. My decision is not negotiable and is irreversible. “On a more personal note, I want to thank you for your faith and trust in me, and I hope I can continue to serve our country in some capacity going forward.” These islands have been the beneficiaries of decades of public service rendered by Mr. Pierson, and we would contend that his contributions have been immeasurable and formative. He has served as a highly regarded member of Cabinet during the years of Cayman’s modern develop- ment and sat with distinction as Speaker of the House. Long after most public servants might be contem- plating a well-deserved retirement, Mr. Pierson did nothing of the sort. He enrolled in Walden University in Minnesota, taking a doctorate degree in psychology, while continuing to engage on matters of central importance to his country. And yet, he now sits at the head of a super-agency, OfReg, that under his direction has badly stumbled. Mr. Pierson, who was one of Cayman’s first credentialed accountants, understands, better than most, the concept of accountability. The threats of physical violence at a recent OfReg board meeting, chaired by Mr. Pierson, simply cannot be tolerated. Mr. Pierson cannot lead OfReg – either as its chairman or its CEO – through the rebuilding process that must now take place. We know Mr. Pierson well, both personally and through his work in government, and we know that he knows that “Scenario No. 2,” as described above, is the best way forward. Never let it be doubted: Mr. Pierson is a loyal patriot who deeply loves his country. It is for that very reason – love of country – that he must resign. If he does so, he will leave his post with his legacy of service indelibly intact. At OfReg: Dignity and decorum must be restored FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS The college campus’s cult of fragility WASHINGTON – The begin- ning of another academic year brings the certainty of campus episodes illus- trating what Daniel Patrick Moynihan, distinguished pro- fessor and venerated politi- cian, called “the leakage of reality from American life.” Colleges and universities are increasingly susceptible to intellectual fads and political hysteria, partly because the institutions employ so many people whose talents, such as they are, are extraneous to the institutions’ core mis- sion: scholarship. Writing last April in the Chronicle of Higher Educa- tion, Lyell Asher, professor of English at Lewis & Clark College, noted that “the kudzu-like growth of the ad- ministrative bureaucracy in higher education” is partly a response to two princi- ples now widely accepted on campuses: Anything that can be construed as big- otry and hatred should be so construed, and anything construed as such should be considered evidence of an epidemic. Often, Asher noted, a majority of the ac- ademic bureaucrats directly involved with students, from dorms to “bias response teams” to freshman “orienta- tion” (which often means po- litical indoctrination), have graduate degrees not in ac- ademic disciplines but from education schools with “two mutually reinforcing char- acteristics”: ideological or- thodoxy and low academic standards for degrees in va- porous subjects like “educa- tional leadership” or “higher- education management.” The problem is not anti- intellectualism but the “un- intellectualism” of a growing cohort of persons who find vocations in micromanaging student behavior in order to combat imagined threats to “social justice.” Can anyone on a campus say anything sensible about how the adjec- tive modifies the noun? Never mind. As Asher said, group- think and political intimida- tion inevitably result from this ever-thickening layer of people with status anxieties because they are parasitic off institutions with schol- arly purposes. The Manhattan Institute’s Heather Mac Donald says that between the 1997-1998 academic year and the Great Recession year of 2008-2009, while the University of Cal- ifornia student population grew 33 percent and tenure- track faculty grew 25 percent, senior administrators grew 125 percent. “The ratio of se- nior managers to professors climbed from 1 to 2.1 to near- parity of 1 to 1.1.” In her just-published book “The Diversity Delu- sion: How Race and Gender Pandering Corrupt the Uni- versity and Undermine Our Culture,” Mac Donald writes that many students have be- come what tort law practitio- ners call “eggshell plaintiffs,” people who make a cult of fragility – being “triggered” (i.e., traumatized) by this or that idea of speech. Asher correctly noted that the lan- guage of triggering “converts students into objects for the sake of rendering their reac- tions ‘objective,’ and by ex- tension valid: A student’s triggered response is no more to be questioned than an apple’s falling downward or a spark’s flying upward.” So the number of things not to be questioned on cam- puses multiplies. Students encouraged to feel fragile will learn to re- coil from “microaggressions” so micro that few can dis- cern them. A University of California guide to microag- gressions gave these exam- ples of insensitive speech: “I believe the most qualified person should get the job” and “Everyone can succeed in this society if they work hard enough.” Fragile students are encouraged in “narcis- sistic victimhood” by admin- istrators whose vocation is to tend to the injured. These ad- ministrators are, Mac Donald argues, “determined to pre- serve in many of their stu- dents the thin skin and solip- sism of adolescence.” Nowadays, radical intel- lectuals who are eager to be “transgressive” have diffi- culty finding remaining so- cial rules and boundaries to transgress: When all icons have been smashed, the icon- oclast’s lot is not a happy one. Similarly, academic ad- ministrators whose mission is the elimination of racism have difficulty finding any in colleges and universities whose student admissions and faculty hiring practices are shaped by the relentless pursuit of diversity. Explicit racism having been substantially reduced in American society, a multi- billion-dollar industry for consultants (and corporate diversity officers, academic deans, etc.) has developed around testing to detect “im- plicit bias.” It is assumed to be ubiquitous until proven otherwise, so detecting it is steady work: Undetectable without arcane tests and ex- pensive experts, you never know when it has been ex- punged, and government su- pervision of everything must be minute and unending. And always there is a trickle of peculiar language. The associate vice chan- cellor and dean of students at the University of Cali- fornia, Berkeley – where the Division of Equity and In- clusion has a staff of 150 – urges students to “listen with integrity.” If you do not understand the peculiar pa- tois spoken by the academy’s administrators, try listening with more integrity. George Will’s email address is georgewill@washpost.com. © 2018, Washington Post Writers Group GEORGE F. WILL Students encouraged to feel fragile will learn to recoil from “microaggressions” so micro that few can discern them. The islands’ most-trusted news source 5 CAYMAN COMPASS • FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 6 LOCAL NEWS FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS SECURE YOUR PROPERTY WITH THE BEST DEALS IN SURVEILLANCE CAMERA SYSTEMS AVAILABLE ANYWHERE ON ISLAND. The Security Centre has three exceptional CCTV deals that just can’t be matched. 3 The Gold Standard: a complete digital, four camera IP system – 4 meg precision viewing at just $1799 The Security Centre guarantees that we will beat any price on a comparable system. Call the Security Centre for your demo today at 949-0004 or visit us online at security.ky 2 The Eagle Eye Special: a high-definition system perfect for the home and small businesses - $1549 All systems offer mobile device access - so you can check on your property remotely. bring an existing security camera system into high-definition – using existing cabling - at just $999 1 The Phoenix HD Upgrade: Suspended sentence activated by ganja, driving offenses Man jailed 18 months from 2016 sentence plus four months CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com The Cayman Islands Court of Appeal last week declined to interfere with a prison sentence of 18 months handed down to Kurt W. Hamann in 2016. The Grand Court had im- posed the sentence as part of a supervision order that in- cluded 240 hours of commu- nity service, random testing for drug use, and counseling for both anger management and drug use. The prison term was suspended for two years. The sentence was imposed after Mr. Hamann pleaded guilty to assault causing grievous bodily harm. The complainant had been hit in the face with a rock and re- quired surgery for his inju- ries. Several months later, he continued to suffer impaired vision in one eye. When attorney John Furniss presented the ap- peal, court president Sir John Goldring said he thought the sentence was “very merciful.” Mr. Furniss explained that the Crown had accepted a plea to simple wounding rather than wounding with intent to cause such serious harm. He thought the sen- tencing judge had in mind the fact that Mr. Hamann had no previous criminal history. The sentencing took place the same month that Mr. Ha- mann turned 24. In September 2017, 15 months after the suspended sentence was imposed, Mr. Ha- mann was in a traffic stop and police officers found ganja in his vehicle. He was found to be driving under the influence of drugs, driving without being qualified and without insur- ance. The vehicle license had expired and there was no cer- tificate of road worthiness. The possession and con- sumption of ganja plus the driving offenses meant that Mr. Hamann had to return to Grand Court for a review of his suspended sentence. Mr. Furniss advised that of the 240 hours of com- munity service ordered, Mr. Hamann had done only 11 hours. Further, he had not complied with orders to provide urine samples for drug testing. In Grand Court, on April 26 this year, he received a sentence of six months for driving under the influence of drugs, with concurrent sen- tences for the other offenses. The 18-month suspended sentence was activated, for a total of 24 months immediate imprisonment. Mr. Furniss noted that six months was the max- imum sentence for a first of- fense of driving under the in- fluence of alcohol or drugs, and it was not unusual for persons to be fined instead or given a very short term in custody. He suggested that the six months could have been made to run con- current and the total of 24 months sentence was mani- festly excessive. Justice Dennis Mor- rison gave the court’s deci- sion after conferring with Justice Goldring and Justice Richard Field. He noted the history of the case, Mr. Hamann’s guilty pleas to the driving and drug charges, and his probation officer’s recommendation that the suspended sentence supervision order be revoked. He agreed with Mr. Furniss that the new offenses were not violent: they were different in nature from Mr. Hamann’s first offending. Justice Morrison referred to the law. When a person on suspended sentence commits a new offense, the judge has four options: he can order the sentence to take effect; he can impose a lesser term; he can substitute a period of suspension; or he can choose to make no order. He emphasized that when a judge proposes to acti- vate a suspended sentence in full, the defendant’s record of compliance is a factor to be taken into account. In the court’s view, Justice Morrison said, Mr. Hamann’s “dismal record of compliance” was “obviously relevant.” He said the sentence acti- vation was a matter entirely within the judge’s discre- tion “and we are quite satis- fied that there is no basis on which this court could prop- erly interfere.” The only remaining ques- tion was whether the six- month consecutive sentence was excessive. He pointed out that Mr. Hamann did plead guilty and so would have been entitled to per- haps a one-third discount. For that reason, the six months was reduced to four months, resulting in a total of 22 months imprisonment. TRIAL CONFIRMED FOR ROAD RACING CHARGES Two drivers, one passenger accused CAROL WINKER cwinker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Trial on Oct. 31 has been confirmed for three men charged with motor racing on roads. Their attorneys, Amelia Fosuhene and Jonathon Hughes, appeared before Magistrate Valdis Foldats in Summary Court on Thursday to advise which witnesses were required. The charges relate to an incident on the Esterley Tibbetts Highway on Oct. 14, 2017, when the defen- dants allegedly took part in a race or trial of speed. Jared Allen Bush, the driver of a Honda, is also charged with dangerous driving for speed. Seth O’Neil Watler, the driver of a Subaru, is also charged with dangerous driving for his manner of driving. Jason Kennedy Wood was described as a passenger in one of the vehicles. At- torney Jonathon Hughes said “aiding and abetting” was the issue in Mr. Wood’s case. Another issue was video taken from another car and how it would be interpreted. Crown counsel Scott Wainwright applied to have all three men tried to- gether and the defense at- torneys agreed.The islands’ most-trusted news source 7 CAYMAN COMPASS • FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 8 LOCAL NEWS FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 • CAYMAN COMPASS KPMG supports International Literacy Day With the Ministry of Education and LIFE, KPMG donates 100 laptops to Red Bay Primary School “While millions of children are celebrating ‘Back to School’ this month, there are over 600 million young people for whom literacy is still an impossible dream. Literacy is the foundation of lifelong learning, and a significant predictor for a bright future. It has the power to fight poverty, to bring hope, to shape a future – a future that is written by us. This Literacy Day, make a real difference and join us in our lifelong learning journey, from basic literacy, through skills development, all the way to leadership development.” Anthony Cowell, Head of Citizenship at KPMG #WordsChangeWorlds kpmg.ky Left to Right: Steven Durksen, Miranda Thomas, Benette Moolman, Jodie McTaggart, Anthony Cowell, Yosha Alphonse, Marilyn Conolly, Tamara Dixon, Lauren Campbell, Meredith Rankine © 2018 KPMG, a Cayman Islands partnership and a member firm of the KPMG network of independent member firms affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International”), a Swiss entity. All rights reserved. The entrance to Sticky Toffee Lane - PHOTO: JEWEL LEVY Shangri-La Bed & Breakfast sits at the end of Sticky Toffee Lane. The sweet story of Sticky Toffee Lane JEWEL LEVY jlevy@pinnaclemedialtd.com Professional wedding photographer Rebecca Da- vidson named Sticky Toffee Lane after her fam- ily’s favorite dessert – sticky toffee pudding. Before that, the area was known as Batabano and was nothing but bush, according to longtime West Bay resi- dent Captain Kem Jackson. “The property around that area was owned by Er- nest Jackson family … there was nothing in the area but high cliff rock until the Jackson family excavated the property and people started building homes,” Mr. Jackson said. Located off Batabano Road in West Bay, Sticky Toffee Lane is not far from Morgan’s Harbour and Ca- lypso Grill, whose signature dessert inspired the Davidson family when naming the road. At first glance, there’s nothing special about Sticky Toffee Lane, just bush and one house at the top of the road. Then, as you near the end, tucked away down the quiet and secluded lane is Shangri-La Bed & Break- fast, consisting of five pri- vate cottages set amid sweet- smelling plants, a man-made lake, cool breezes and iguanas basking in the sun. Ms. Davidson’s brother George Davidson, a real es- tate agent, found the location years ago. He said he had found a “gem in the middle of the bushes,” and his family immediately bought the property. “It was my sister’s idea to name the road Sticky Toffee Lane when the family was trying to come up with a name after building Shangri- La Bed and Breakfast some 18 years ago,” Mr. Davidson said. By that time, the family had fallen in love with Ca- lypso Grill’s sticky toffee pud- ding, and his sister thought it was a fun and cool idea to name the road. “It was just a dirt road. When friends came to visit, we had a hard time explaining to them were it was. They also had a hard time finding the place,” Mr. Davidson said. Eventually, he called gov- ernment to find out if he could name the road. He was told 50 percent of the people living on the road had to agree. Fortunately for the Davidson’s, only one other person lived on the lane. Neighbor Errol Rankine took one look at the papers, “Sticky Toffee Lane, huh … oh, that’s my wife’s favorite dessert,” he said. Sticky toffee pudding is a British dessert consisting of a very moist sponge cake, made with finely chopped dates, covered in a toffee sauce and often served with a vanilla custard or vanilla ice cream. It was made famous in Cayman by Calypso Grill chef George Fowler who (lit- erally) wrote the book on the dessert: “Going Down Sticky Toffee Lane.” Two years ago, the David- sons sold their property to Canadian Dean Gross. Mr. Gross said he has at- tempted to maintain the same tranquil charm about the place from when he first bought it. “Many of the locals never heard of the place, with its 10 rooms, hot tub, pool and nice atmosphere over- looking a calm lake,” he said. Iguanas bask in the sun along the shores of the man-made lake. - PHOTO: JEWEL LEVYThe islands’ most-trusted news source 9 this year will be $5,540 per month, or $66,480 per year. For John Gray High School P.E. teacher Craig Smith, the increase in pay will mean he can go home to England in March to visit his brother, whose family is ex- pecting a new baby. Before, he said, the one- week break in March would have been too short to justify the cost of airline tickets. “I would never have done it,” said Mr. Smith, 33, who is in his fifth year at the high school. “But now, it’s like, ‘Let’s just go.’” John Gray music teacher Naomi Allnutt, 42, said her husband is also a teacher. Their additional income, she said, will help them with maintenance and improve- ments on a home they re- cently bought. The increase, she said, has boosted morale at the school. “There’s a bit of buoy- ancy,” Mrs. Allnutt said. “I don’t do this job for the money, but the [addi- tional] money is very nice. It gives you the feeling that you’re respected.” Michael Havlin, 52, has been a high school mathematics instructor for 24 years. He recalled going through a 10-year period after sal- aries were frozen in 2002, when teachers received no in- crease in pay. He said the pay increase is “a genuine adjustment that we can appreciate.” He too has seen an im- provement in morale among his fellow faculty members, he said, “especially knowing there’s going to be an- other adjustment.” The more lucrative pay scale, he said, will help the school to attract better teachers. “I’m sure you’ve lost a few people not having this in front of you,” he said to John Gray Principal Jona- than Clark, referring to the salary schedule. “I have,” Mr. Clark said. “It allows us to recruit high-cal- iber staff. We’ll be more com- petitive internationally.” Opal Brown, 39, is in her fourth year of teaching Eng- lish at John Gray. She plans to spend her additional salary on pursuing a mas- ter’s degree online, some- thing that was beyond her means before. “For the most part,” she said of the pay raise, “people are happy about it: ‘Boy I’m so glad they finally remem- bered to give us an increase.’ I’ve heard other people say they wonder if other civil ser- vants will feel they should get an increase.” “It’s great for us,” Mr. Smith said, “but without the other [non-teaching] staff, we couldn’t do our job. The sup- port staff do a great job.” Those positions were not included in the pay raise. Mr. Clark said support staff did get a recent increase in pay along with other gov- ernment workers. He said he is happy to see teachers being recognized where it counts. “You could never pay staff the amount they de- serve for the hours they put in,” he said. CAYMAN COMPASS • FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 Churchill’s Funeral Home Condolences can be registered at: www.churchillsfuneralhome.com In Loving Memory of Our Beautiful Mother, Netha Pearl Ebanks, who left us on Wednesday August 29, 2018 . Please join us for a Candlelight Service in her memory on Friday September 14, 2018 at 6:30 p.m.on the lawn of the Glass House Building, (Next to the Government Admin. Building). Please join us as we Celebrate Her Life on Saturday September 15, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. at the Cayman Islands Baptist Church, 163, Pedro Castle Rd, Savannah, Cayman Islands. Interment follows at Old Prospect Cemetery. The Family Of The Late Condolences can be registered at boddenfuneralservices.com & Bodden Funeral Service Facebook page. Eduardo G. Bodden regret to announce his passing on Tuesday, 4 September 2018. A memorial service will be held 2:30 p.m. Saturday 15 September, 2018 at Bodden Funeral Service Chapel, 117 Walkers Rd. In Memor� of Kris (Bella) Anderson Bor�: September 14th, 1977 A limb has fallen fr om the family t�ee. Knowing Kris he would say “Don’t g�ieve for me”. My mind is at ease, my soul is at rest. You cannot question Father God because he knew best.” We miss you dearly, and t�� to car�� on but it’s diffi cult to face the realit� that you’re gone. Today is especially sad because you are not here One day we will meet again and ever��hing will be clear. RIP fr om your loving family and fr iends. New law for social media sex offenders ‘Paltry sentence’ for track coach inspired legal change JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com Tough new laws to tackle sex offenders who “groom” children using cellphones and social media were passed Wednesday. The amendments to the Penal Code create a host of new offenses that specifi- cally deal with “sexual com- munication” with a child and allow for more severe penal- ties in cases where no phys- ical assault takes place. Attorney General Sam Bulgin said the changes were inspired, in part, by the re- cent case of track coach Ato Stephens, who he said had escaped with a “paltry sen- tence.” Mr. Stephens, who persuaded a teenage athlete to send him topless pictures of herself, was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Mr. Bulgin said that case and others had highlighted a gap in Cayman Islands law when it comes to sex of- fenses committed online or on social media. He said Mr. Stephens had to be prosecuted for abuse of an information and com- munication technology net- work, which carries a much lighter sentence than the new sexual offenses. “He was convicted and sentenced to what all consid- ered was a paltry sentence. The court had very limited power because of the state of the law,” Mr. Bulgin said. “If he were convicted after this bill, he would have to be sentenced to at least seven years in prison.” Mr. Bulgin said the changes to the law would allow the courts to deal with grooming, which he defined as attempting to befriend a child for sexual purposes, as a distinct offense. Previously such offenses were prose- cuted under the ICTA law or dealt with as aggravating feature of an assault. The bill creates eight new offenses, including sexual communication with a child, arranging to meet a child for sexual purposes, at- tempting to “procure a child for sexual activity,” causing a child to watch sexual activity and inviting a child to en- gage in sexual activity. Pen- alties initially ranged from four to 12 years imprison- ment, depending on the cir- cumstances and whether the perpetrator held a position of trust, but were revised up- ward after Opposition mem- bers raised concerns. Opposition legislators Anthony Eden and Arden McLean had suggested, during the initial debate last week, that the sentences were too lenient for sexual of- fenses against children. Following their comments, both Austin Harris, a gov- ernment member and legis- lator for Prospect, and the At- torney General clarified that the law dealt with communi- cation, not physical assault. Mr. Harris said there was a danger of setting manda- tory minimum sentences that did not allow flexibility for judges to consider the cir- cumstances of each case. He cited an example of a rela- tionship between an 18-year- old boy and a girl of almost 16, saying “adolescent young love” could end up being caught up in the range of of- Mr. Bulgin said the changes to the law would allow the courts to deal with grooming. NEW PAY SCHEDULE – REGULAR CLASSROOM TEACHERS Existing scale per monthNew scale per month L1$3,689K3$4,329 L2$3,782K3$4,329 L3$3,876K3$4,329 L4$3,973K3$4,329 L5 $4,073 K3 $4,329 L6$4,174K4$4,437 L7 $4,279 K5 $4,547 L8$4,387K6$4,661 L9$4,494K7$4,778 L10$4,608K8$4,896 L11$4,723K9$5,018 L12$4,842K10$5,145 L13$4,962K11$5,274 Those teachers currently compensated on the L Grade were upgraded to the K grade effective Sept. 1, 2018. Details of teacher pay scale announced CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 as the outer bands of the system could still cause heavy rainfall on the is- land,” Dominica News On- line reported. Maximum sustained winds remained near 45 mph Thursday, according to the Cayman Islands Na- tional Weather Service. Isaac is forecast to re- main a tropical storm through Sunday, as it moves northwestward and passes south of Jamaica. At that time, the system is ex- pected to weaken to a trop- ical depression that could bring rain and rough seas to the Cayman Islands. “We are anticipating it to be a tropical depression or wave as it moves into the northwestern Carib- bean Monday morning, and we expect showers around that time,” said National Weather Service forecaster Allan Ebanks. He warned that the storm could reintensify after it passes Cayman and moves further into the western Caribbean. The rains that fell on Cayman Thursday were unrelated to any of the named storms moving through the region. Mr. Ebanks said the showers came from an upper-level trough interacting with the daytime heat. He es- timated .84 inches had fallen on Grand Cayman Thursday and expected light, localized showers through the evening. Two other systems – Tropical Storm Helene and Subtropical Storm Joyce – posed no threat to the Cayman Islands. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Tropical Storm Isaac rolls through Eastern Caribbean fenses included in the law. He added that the orig- inal sentencing guidelines in the law were already several notches above similar legis- lation in the U.K., where the guidelines indicate sentences of 1-2 years. Despite this, government raised the min- imum sentences in the law to six years when the bill was passed Wednesday. Mr. Bulgin also com- mitted to review sentencing guidelines in the Penal Code for sexual assaults and sim- ilar offenses. He said he rec- ognized community con- cern over what appeared to be lenient sentences for such offenses. In his summation of the amendments, he clar- ified again that this law was looking specifically at communication and not at physical assault. “What this bill is seeking to do is to address what sometimes happens before we get to the stage of actual physical contact between the offender and the victim. “We are looking at the stage where the adult person has deliberately started a connection, a remote relationship with the eventual victim in order to gain the trust of that child – this usually happens now by social media, online chat rooms, instant messaging, email, WhatsApp or text.”Next >