This story has been updated from a previous version.
The St James Parish Court has dismissed an injunction application brought by the mother of nine-year-old Gabriel King, giving the police access to her phone.
The court ruled that the extraction of data from Amoi Issa’s phone should be done on or before November 24.
Further to the ruling, Mrs Issa should not be present at the extraction but her attorney may attend as an observer. A qualified professional analyst may also observe the process of accessing data from the phone that has been in police custody since January.
King was found with his throat slashed in the back seat of his mother’s car on the Fairfield main road on January 13 this year. His mother reported to the police that her car was hijacked by gunmen who had made off with the vehicle.
Marjorie Gordon has the report.
The police obtained a production order to gain access to Mrs. Issa’s phone to assist with the investigation of her son’s death. Mrs. Issa is now compelled to provide the police with the password to her phone.
Senior parish judge Mrs. Sasha Ashley ruled that the number of people who must know the password should be limited. Judge Ashley said the process should not be postponed if either the attorney or the independent analyst are not present.
Before the ruling, attorney, Chuck Cameron, who represents Mrs Issa, contested that the police misled the court in granting the production order.
Cameron argued on the basis, that the police failed in their duty to provide full or frank disclosure to the court. He submitted that the police were well aware that cell site data could not be obtained from a phone.
He said if the police were genuinely interested in obtaining cell site data they would’ve gone directly to the telecommunications provider. In this case he posited that the court was misled in granting the production order.
Cameron asked for the phone to be returned at the end of the extraction process or that the password be changed, but no ruling was made on this request.
He argued that without that safeguard the process could be undermined if the police have unrestricted access to the entire phone.
Speaking with our news centre, Cameron highlighted the privacy concern of his client.
Cameron has given notice of his intention to appeal the orders.
Counsel representing the Jamaica Constabulary Force, JCF stressed that the production order was granted in September, and that it’s now November.
Highlighting the position, the JCF wouldn’t want any further delay as the matter is of public interest.
