Court clears man who was fired after being charged with beating his mother

The former prison warder lost his job after he was accused of beating up his own mother 

The court said that it could not find guilt on the charges of grievous bodily harm as these had not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt
The court said that it could not find guilt on the charges of grievous bodily harm as these had not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt

A former prison warder who lost his job after being accused of beating up his own mother has been cleared due to lack of evidence, after the mother refused to testify against him.

The 34 year-old man from Paola had been arraigned in June 2018 and accused of grievously injuring his 61 year-old mother, causing her to fear violence would be used against her, as well as attacking and threatening the woman.

The court, presided by magistrate Audrey Demicoli had heard how on 27 June 2018, the police had been informed that the woman had suffered a broken arm in an altercation with her son, following an argument. She had been certified as suffering from grievous injuries by a doctor at the Mosta Health Centre.

The accused had been arrested and had released a statement to the police, in which he explained that he lived with his mother, who had effectively blocked a corridor with her belongings. On the day of the incident, the accused had told his mother to remove the items several times, adding that he had no time to do so himself because of the nature of his work.

He denied assaulting the woman.

In his statement, the accused said that his mother had shouted at him, telling him to mind his own business, very close to his face. She had also blocked his exit. For this reason, he said, he had pushed her aside and she had tripped up and fallen on her arm, breaking it.

The accused had pleaded not guilty to the charges but declined to testify in the proceedings.

But in sittings held in July 2018 and May 2019, the victim had told the court that she did not wish to testify against her son and had forgiven him.

As a result, the magistrate observed that although the charges could be prosecuted ex officio (without the complaint of the injured party) the absence of the woman’s testimony left the prosecution with just the testimony of a doctor confirming the woman’s injuries.

For this reason, the court said, it could not find the guilt on the charges of grievous bodily harm and causing fear of violence as they had not been proven beyond reasonable doubt. The rest of the charges were renounced to by the victim publicly forgiving the accused, said the magistrate.

The man was declared innocent of all charges and released.

Inspector Shawn Pawney prosecuted. Lawyers Ishmael Psaila and Edward Gatt were defence counsel.