Supreme Court Justice in chambers has summoned the trial judge hearing the Capitol Arson case involving former House Speaker Fonati Koffa and others over his decision to dismantle the jury panel.
Associate Justice Yussif Kaba ordered Criminal Court ‘A’ Judge Roosevelt Willie to appear for a conference on Thursday with defense team where he’s expected to provide legal rationale underpinning his ruling.
The summon is rooted in defense lawyers’ petition filed with the High Court, which argues that Judge Willie’s decision was irregular, disruptive, and potentially damaging to the fairness of the trial.
They contended that dismissing the jury midstream undermines the credibility of the proceedings and risks eroding public confidence in the justice system
The judge will stay clear of all proceedings until the outcome of the scheduled hearing, the Supreme Court notice said.
Willie, one of the country’s experienced judges has been at the end of strings of contentious decision making that appears to undermine the integrity of trial.
Allowing both defense and prosecution to argue the credibility of jurors while the jury panel was presence in court it seems like his lowest point in the proceedings, according to legal analyst.
More than a year after the December 2024 fire, the prosecution’s case has encountered significant hurdles.
Criminal Court “A” disbanded the original jury in early January after prosecutors expressed concerns about juror line of questioning during testimony, and Judge Roosevelt Z. Willie ordered immediate reselection to protect the integrity of the proceedings.
Prosecutors asked for the jury’s removal after a juror, during a Dec. 22 hearing, requested a replay of video footage and then questioned a prosecution witness about whether a person seen in the footage was one of the defendants, Thomas Etheridge.
The juror’s remark that the individual “appeared to be Chinese” and the follow-up questioning led prosecutors to contend jurors might be consulting each other, a claim defense lawyers vehemently denied. Defense counsel argued juror questions show attentiveness and that prosecutors offered no concrete evidence of misconduct.
Evidence presented by the state has also been challenged in open court. Chief Criminal Investigator Raphael Wilson, a principal prosecution witness, acknowledged during testimony that items introduced as alleged arson instruments — including a matchbox and a Clorox bottle purported to contain fuel — yielded no fingerprints attributable to the defendants. He also conceded there is no CCTV footage in evidence linking the accused to the scene.
Defense lawyers have pointed to discrepancies between earlier descriptions of exhibits and what was produced at trial — for example, a matchbox previously described as three inches long appearing much smaller in court, and a container earlier identified as a mayonnaise jar later presented as a Clorox bottle.
Counsel further disputed Wilson’s interpretation of audio recordings and challenged his qualifications to identify voices; Judge Willie allowed the recordings to be played but limited their use to showing that statements were made, not to prove the substantive truth of their contents.
