Kareem Franklin Found Guilty of Grievous Harm in Police Shooting Case

Twenty-seven-year-old Kareem Franklin managed to escape two charges of attempted murder against two police officers but was found guilty of a lesser offense today. Franklin appeared in the Belize High Court, where Justice Candace Nanton found him not guilty of attempted murder but guilty of “use of deadly means of harm with intent to cause grievous harm”. In her ruling, Justice Nanton said that the crown did not prove that Franklin intended to kill officers Stephen Choco and Joseph Sutherland; however, his actions did amount to the intention of grievous harm. Frankling was further remanded to the Belize Central Prison until his sentencing hearing, which was set for September 26.  Franklin’s trial for two counts of attempted murder started on May 24 of this year and concluded on June 10. On March 1, 2016, Franklin pulled a gun and opened fire on officers Choco and Sutherland, during a motorcycle chase on Mahogany Street in Belize City.