Wilkie Arthur

Freelance Court Reporter

Unusual Proceeding

#TurksandCaicos, August 14, 2023 – Alex Nash, the 36-year-old American man who last Friday appeared before The Hon. Justice Chris Selochan with intention to plead guilty to an alleged firearm and ammunition found in his possession while leaving the country on July 17th 2023, at the Providenciale/Howard Hamilton International Airport, Turks and Caicos Islands.  However, before being arraigned and pleading guilty, the learned the judge in a practice that is not customarily seen in the Turks and Caicos, begun by asking the accused a few questions directly and not through his lawyer.

He asked him about being advised concerning the matter he intends to plead to. He asked him about his awareness regarding the consequences of the matter he intends to plead. Do you understand the possible punishment you can receive as it relates to these offenses? The accused answered yes to all questions, he was advised by his attorney Ms. Sheena Mair. “He knows the consequence and he accepts responsibility and he’s doing this on his own free will.”

Pleading Guilty

The judge then went on to have the charges read to him. Nash pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm and illegal possession of 20 rounds of ammunition for a gray and black TP 9mm firearm and 20 rounds of ammunition for that firearm.

Exceptional Circumstance

Having pleaded guilty, the judge invited Sheena Mair, Nash’s Human Rights attorney to go straight into her submission. She did and had filed a written submission pertaining to exceptional circumstances.

Ms. Mair proceeded to explain to the judge what amount to “exceptional circumstances” in this case to enable him to depart from the mandatory minimum sentence of 12 years imprisonment for the visiting tourist.

One of the judge’s main expressed concerns were, that, it was legal for her client to have a firearm in his house in the state of Kentucky but if he was moving the firearm, he was supposed to have some sort of permit or permission to you to carry it.

It was mentioned that Alec Nash did not have this permit or permission, but the defendant explained to the judge through his counsel, that he would only need that permit or permission if he was carrying it on him, in his pocket, pants or on a holster but not to carry it from one spot to the next.

It was explained it had to be in a locked box with the magazine outside the gun. This is how it was transported from his house through the airport to the Turks and Caicos Islands. The firearm was properly secured in a locked box.

Ms. Mair explained to the judge that her client was told, when he contacted the airlines that he could travel to the TCI with his gun. They further told him when he reached the Turks and Caicos Islands there will become a special area for him to pick up this gun. He checked when he arrived in TCI. He inquired of the agents here in TCI on where he can pick up his firearm that’s in his luggage. The agents told him all luggage were on the belt, so he then proceeded to the belt and found his luggage there, picked it up and proceeded to the hotel at Rock House where he lived along with his girlfriend.

Ms. Mair told the court that he has no previous conviction in the United States. He did not try to conceal the firearm when travelling to the Turks and Caicos nor on his departure, he made inquiries and was given wrong information.

Ms. Mair submitted a number of case s in support of why the judge should find that there are ‘exceptional circumstances’ to depart from the mandatory minimum sentence of 12 years imprisonment including three local case authorities, two of them being very recent as of this year.

Precedent Set

One from November of 2019 where the then Hon. Chief Justice Mrs. Margaret Ramsey-Hale sentenced a 73 years old retired, disabled, decorated American war veteran, who served as a Navy Seal to $20,000 or one year imprisonment.

The defendant, Aloysius Ebner who was injured in combat, ran his boat aground near an uninhibited Cay namely Big Sand Cay close Salt Cay. He had a number of guns and ammunition in his boat until he admitted to disposing about some seven rifles in deep water when he realized his boat was having problems.  A cache of seven pistols, a shotgun and 8,000 rounds of ammunition were confiscated.

The man was heading back home to the US from the Dominican Republic; he did no jail time in the Turks and Caicos for the major offence which at the time carried a mandatory 7-year prison term.

In a second case, from March 2023, David Carrol O’Connor was found with 44 rounds of ammunition at the Providenciales International Airport, and he entered a guilty plea around two months later.  Justice Tayna Lobban Jackson sentenced him on May 16 to a fine of $6,670.00 or 90 days imprisonment.

Again, no jail time for the visitor to the British overseas territory, despite strict gun laws and high gun crime.

In the case of Alex Guzman, he was found with a firearm and ammunition once again at the airport in Providenciales.  Guzman also pleaded guilty before same judge Jackson on June 2, 2023, and was sentenced on three days later to a fine of $3,500.00 or 60 days imprisonment.

About the Defendant

Counsel for Alec Nash submitted that he had been a legal gun owner in his native USA for 2 to 3 years that he has never had to use it.  It was also expressed that Nash lost his sister to gun violence, and his brother was a survivor of a gun attack. These incidents were cited as the reasons Nash felt the need to get a gun.

It was also presented by the attorney, that Nash lived at the Rock House with the firearm from July 13-17, 2023.  The firearm was kept in a safe whilst living there.

The court also learned Alec Nash is a father of three and legally separated from his wife and that he is responsible for half their maintenance.

Why Alec Nash must Go to Jail

The learned judge Mr. Chris Selochan in hearing the submissions by Principal Public Prosecutor Clement Joseph as he explained in the court this past Friday August 11, 2023, that there are no exceptional circumstances and that all persons charge with firearms and ammo must do jail time.

He said, a gun license in the United States is not exceptional circumstances because it is illegal to possess an unregistered firearm in the TCI.

Joseph said there’s nothing exceptional about these gun cases involving tourists any longer, it’s becoming a norm and everyone saying the same thing. There’s nothing exceptional about these cases any more they must go to prison.

The public prosecutor reminded the judge of the disparity of treatment between a local found with an illegal gun and a tourist found with the same.

Joseph said when locals are found with a firearm, they hardly ever get bail and we imprisoned them for whatever the mandatory minimum is, be it five years, seven years and now 12 years imprisonment.

The same must apply to all individuals found offending no matter the circumstances or where they come from. They must go to jail too.

In the end, the learned Justice found that Sheena Mair made a good and convincing case of exceptional circumstances and he accepted that there were exceptional circumstances to enable him to depart from the mandatory minimum sentence of 12 years.

The judge pointed out that with two very recent cases where a lesser sentence was conveyed upon the defendant, it would be unfair and unjust to treat this defendant any differently.

He therefore sentenced ALEC NASH to a fine of $5,000.00 or 60 days imprisonment. The fine was paid, and Nash has since left the country.