On February 1, Opposition Member of Parliament and former Government Minister David Patterson appeared before the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court facing charges of indecent exposure and use of obscene language.
The charges were filed against MP Patterson after a Campbellville resident, Ramroop Odit, reported that the politician, while attending an event in his area, walked across the road and relieved himself against a fence. The man, who appeared in court virtually, alleged that when he objected to Patterson’s actions, he was greeted with foul language.
In July 2023 Patterson was held and then released on $200,000 bail.
Patterson appeared before Magistrate Dylon Bess on Thursday morning, facing charges of indecent exposure and the use of obscene language. He was represented by Attorneys Nigel Hughes and Ronald Daniels.
Magistrate Bess dismissed the charges laid against the MP, citing a lack of sufficient evidence to tie Patterson to the allegations.
During the trial, the virtual complainant was called upon to provide evidence of his claim that Patterson exposed himself while urinating against a fence. However, the man was unable to provide any substantial information during cross-examination, as he admitted he looked away from the supposedly exposed person during the act.
Video evidence was offered to back up his claim, and this revealed that the person’s back was not facing the complainant. The recording also failed to show a clear image of the urinating person.
In relation to the obscene language allegedly used, the loud music and traffic in the audio of the video did not allow for the establishment of whether such language was used.
Both charges were thrown out by the Court.