Lawyers representing the Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM) Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield, are calling for him to be tried before a jury in the High Court.
Lowenfield was slapped with six charges for misconduct in public office in relation to the March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections.
The CEO, who is being represented by Attorneys-at-Law Nigel Hughes and Ronald Daniels, is arguing that if Lowenfield has offended the country, he should face a jury instead of a magistrate.
“The allegation is that he has committed fraud against everybody in the country, so the best forum for that is before the High Court, where the jury has representatives of the people of the country in determining as to whether fraud has been perpetrated against the country…” Daniels said while adding that the prosecution has made an application for the charges disposed of summarily.
Presently, the charges against Lowenfield were laid indictable, and if the application by the prosecution accedes, the CEO will be entitled to plead to the charges. In which his trial in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts will initiate.
However, if the application is allowed for him to be tried in the High Court, the charges against him would remain indictable, and the managing Magistrate will conduct a Preliminary Inquiry (PI) to determine whether there is adequate evidence to put him on trial for the offences before a judge and a jury.
According to Ronald, they will lay over submissions to defend their application for trial by jury later this month.
Lowenfield is currently facing six electoral fraud charges that were instituted against him earlier this month by the Guyana Police Force (GPF).
Those six charges are three counts of misconduct in public office and three counts of forgery. Lowenfield was released on a total of $300,000 bail for those charges, and the case continues this month end.
