Selgado to be Sentenced on June 14th; Will He Get Prison Time?

Sentencing for embattled attorney Oscar Selgado is set for June fourteenth, when High Court Justice Nigel Pilgrim will decide whether Selgado, who has been convicted of abetment to murder, will be given prison time for the crime he committed.  The past two weeks have seen Selgado’s legal team put to the court several reasons why a non-custodial sentence should be handed down, including the fact that he is diabetic and is in poor health at the Belize Central Prison.  While that is the view of attorney Arthur Saldivar, the Director of Public Prosecutions is of the firmly held position that Selgado should be given a prison sentence, notwithstanding his health condition.  At the conclusion of today’s session, attorney Saldivar spoke with reporters about the court’s deliberations.

 

Arthur Saldivar, Attorney-at-law

“The court is guided by certain principles when it comes to exercising judicial reasoning in meting out a sentence under these circumstances.  The court has to give consideration to the issue of deterrence, of rehabilitation, of prevention and certainly the court also has to give consideration to retribution.  Every crime is an offense against the state, so the interest of the general public looms large under these circumstances.  Suffice it for me to say that what also looms large is the particular status of the offender in this case, him being an attorney-at-law and a person imbued with a special knowledge of the law and what is right legally and what is wrong, not only legally, but morally.  So these things loom large and these things have to be taken into consideration.  Also, what has to be taken into consideration is the health of the offender.  So with all this, myself, in representing and advocating on behalf of Mr. Selgado had to place as many as possible, issues for the court to consider in his favor, while at the same time not negating the existence of those issues that go against him.  And, of course, the other side, Madam D.P.P. had to take out that similar exercise with more of an emphasis on that which should be considered to his discredit.  So, insofar as that process goes, it was comprehensive, it was lengthy and we believe that the court has more than sufficient information that we provided, as well as what it has on its own to come out with a decision that would be fair and just and certainly acceptable to the Belizean public.”