Two Police Officers Face Manslaughter Charges in Derrick Uh Case

Two of the four police officers charged for manslaughter in the death of 20-year-old Derrick Uh have walked free from that charge. Uh died in August 2022 after being left overnight inside a police van with no ventilation. A postmortem examination confirmed that he suffocated. On Thursday the officers Isaias Sanchez, Rosaria Romero, Alrick Borland and Errol Peralta appeared in the Corozal Magistrate’s Court before Magistrate Sharmaine Gillett for a preliminary inquiry (PI). During the PI police prosecutor Corporal Jorge Ayala informed the court that the Director of Public Prosecutions issued a directive to withdraw the matter against Sanchez and Romero and proceed against Peralta and Borland. There was no reason given as to why the matter was withdrawn against those officers specifically. Meanwhile, Peralta and Borland are due back in court for another PI on July 14. Back in June 2022, Minister Kareem Musa stated that there was negligence in how the police officers handled the situation. In the event of a lawsuit from Uh’s family against the police department, Musa said it should be handled to assess the quantum of damages and not who is at fault.