People of the Virgin Islands v. Shamari Elmes

• Court: Superior Court of The Virgin Islands
• Decided: June 2, 2020
• Docket: ST-19-CR-119
• Status: Unpublished

Opinion

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS DIVISION OF ST CROIX

PEOPLE OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS )

P1mm ; CRIMINAL No ST Isl-CR 119 SHAMARI ELMES V g 2020 VI Super 65U

Defendant ;

MEMORANDUM OPINION and ORDER

11 Before the Court is the Pe0ple’s Motion to Amend Information pursuant to Rule 3(d) of

the Virgin Islands Rules of Criminal Procedure, filed April 24, 2020, and Defendant Shaman

Elmes’ Opposition to People’s Motion to Amend Information in Part The proposed First Amended

Information seeks dismissal of eight specified counts and the revision of four counts to include an

aiding and abetting element For the reasons stated below, the Motion will be granted

1| 2 Defendant Elmes was arrested and originally charged in a 20 count Information filed May

21, 2019 with the following offenses one count of Attempted First Degree Murder, one count of

Attempted Second Degree Murder, two counts of Attempted First Degree Felony Murder, one

count of Unauthorized Possession of a Firearm within a Thousand Feet of a Public Housing

Community, two counts of First Degree Assault, two counts of Third Degree Assault, one count

of Unauthorized Possession of a Firearm, one count of Unauthorized Possession of Ammunition,

count of Reckless Bndangerment in the First Degree, and eight counts of Using an Unlicensed

Firearm dunng the commission of a violent felony

13 The affidavit of VIPD Detective Jamaal Fleming supported the Information, setting out

that Lessroy Gumbs (charged separately in ST l9-CR 120) arrived at the First Stop Gas Station

in Estate Thomas, St Thomas, sometime just after midnight on May 7, 2019 Gumbs engaged in

an unspecified verbal altercation with more than one individual in the vicinity, including James Memorandum Opinion and Order People ofthe Virgin Islands v Shaman Elma: ST l9-CR I I9 Page 2 of6 2020 VI Super 65D

Nathaniel (charged separately in ST 19 CR 126) As the argument escalated Gumbs and others at

the scene, including Nathaniel, brandished firearms Gumbs attempted to retreat to his vehicle, but

he was pursued by several of the men, including Nathaniel Deputy Marshal Junior Clarke, who

was working a private security detail at the gas station, attempted to deescalate the situation At

that time, Defendant Elmes “brandished a black firearm and pointed it at Mr Gumbs Mr Elmes

then shot at Mr Gumbs ” Det Fleming affid {l 12 Elmes also fired shots toward the door of the

gas station where Marshal Clarke was standing before fleeing to the adjacent Oswald Harris Court

Housing Community Marshal Clarke returned fire at Elmes, and Gumbs allegedly returned fire at

Elmes Nathaniel also “removed a black firearm fiom his waistband and ran in the direction of

Oswald Harris Court Housing Community Mr Nathaniel is also observed emerging from the area

ofOswald Harris Court firing a firearm at Mr Gumbs He [Nathaniel] then jumps the wall adjacent

to the First Stop Gas Station heading towards First Stop Gas Station pointing a firearm at Mr

Gumbs ” Id 1H 12 13 During the shoot-out, Elmes allegedly shot Marshal Clarke in the

abdomen and Elmes was wounded in his foot

1] 4 The People’s Motion seeks to dismiss Counts One through Eight of the original

lnforrnation, to renumber the remaining counts sequentially in the First Amended Information as

Counts One through Twelve; and to add the element of aiding and abetting (14 VIC Section

ll(a)) to the assault charges set forth in Counts One (First Degree Assault) Three (First Degree

Assault) Five (Third Degree Assault) and Seven (Third Degree Assault) of the proposed First

Amended Information Defendant Elmes does not object to the dismissal of the first eight counts

of the original Information, or the renumbering of the remaining counts However, Elmes does

object to the inclusion of the element of aiding and abetting to the four assault counts Memorandum Opinion and Order People ofthe Virgin Islands v Shaman Elmes ST l9-CR 1 l9 Page 3 of6 2020 VI Super 65v

15 VI R Crim P 3(d) states “[U]nless an additional or different offense is charged or a

substantial right ofthe defendant is prejudiced, the court may permit an information to be amended

at any time before the verdict or finding ” Here, as the date for trial has yet to be set, and there has

been no verdict or finding, the Information may be amended unless an additional or different

offense is charged or a substantial right of Defendant Elmes is prejudiced

1] 6 The People assert that the addition of the aiding and abetting element to four counts of the

First Amended Information does not result in an additional or different offense being charged and

that the amendment would not result in prejudice to any substantial right of Defendant Rimes

Elmes counters, arguing that the proposed addition of an aiding and abetting element to those

counts constitutes additional charges and different offenses from those charged in the original

Information Moreover, Elmes argues that the addition ofthe aiding and abetting element to these

four counts would prejudice him as it expands the circumstances under which he could be found

guilty of those crimes charged, permitting the jury to hold him accountable for the actions of

another, a prospect for which he was provided no notice by the original Information

17 Title 14 Virgin Islands Code Section 11(3) states “[W]hoever commits a crime or offense

or aids, abets, counsels, commands, induces or procures its commission, is punishable as a

principal ” While Elmes argues that the inclusion of the aiding and abetting element constitutes

additional or different charges against him, the fact is that the Amended Information charges the

same crimes in these counts as does the original, and the inclusion of the aiding and abetting

element does not result in any additional potential penalty on conviction, as Defendant Elma has

already been charged as a principal in each of the four counts, for each of which probable cause

has been found Memorandum Opinion and Order People ofthe Virgin Islands v Shaman Elmer ST l9-CR “9 Page 4 ON 2020 VI Super 65H

1| 9 The reference to the aiding and abetting statute does not add new or different charges, but

simply provides an alternate means by which Defendant Elmes may be held accountable for the

same offenses already charged The Court finds that the inclusion of the aiding and abetting

element in the Counts One, Three, Five and Seven of the First Amended Infomtion does not

constitute the charging of new or additional offenses beyond those that were included in the

original Information

1| 10 As no new charges are being added, the proposed amendment shall be permissible if it does

not prejudice a substantial right ofDefendant Elmes In Gomalves v People ofthe Virgin Islands,

the Supreme Court found that the trial court properly allowed the prosecution to amend the

lnforrnation, on the third day of trial, to include language referring to defendant’s position of

authority over his minor sexual assault victim The Court determined that the defendant had

adequate notice that the requisite aggravating factor alleged was the use ofhis position ofauthority

over the victim on the charge of Second Degree Aggravated Rape in that the original Information

clearly stated the familial relationship between father and daughter and gave no indication that the

People planned to pursue an alternate theory of force or intimidation as the aggravating factor 70

V I 812, 847 (V I 2019) The Court held the amendment permissible as no additional or new

charges were added and the defendant had adequate notice of the allegation that he had used his

position of authority over the victim, as the aggravating factor of crime charged in the Amended

Information, such that he could not claim to be surprised by the amendment

1| 11 “A criminal information should be construed as a whole using common sense to interpret

the information to include facts that are logically and rationally implied ” Id 70 V I at 844 (citing

Charles v People 60 V I 823 837 (V I 2014)) In determining whether a defendant had been

put on notice ofthe charges, sources in the information extrinsic to the specific count can be used Memorandum Opinion and Order People ofthe Virgin Islands v Shamari Elmer 31‘ 19-011 119 Page 5 of6 2020 VI Super 650

to determine whether the defendant was sufficiently apprised of the offense charged ”’ Id

(emphasis in original) (citing Charles, 60 V I at 837 38)

1] 12 In Gomalves, the Supreme Court held that the “explicit language in the probable cause

affidavit which was attached to the information that initiated this prosecution elucidated ample

additional detail” that put the defendant on notice ofthe aggravating element ofthe crime charged

that the People intended to pursue Id 70 VI at 848 “‘Since the charging information and the

probable cause affidavit are filed together, they should be viewed in tandem to determine if they

satisfy the goal of putting the defendant on notice of the crimes with which [he] is charged so

that [he] can prepare an appropriate defense ’ Id (quoting Woods v State, 980 N E 2d 439 443

(ind Ct App 2012)

1| 13 By his Opposition, Elmes argues that the Amended Information expands the circumstances

in which a jury might find him guilty, and that such expansion improperly deprives him of being

provided notice of the charges against him in order to prepare his defense Yet, Elmes has not

articulated how his defense is prejudiced or ‘identified any defense he would have pursued” but

for the amendment, or “how he would have changed his defense” if the amendment were

disallowed Id 70 V I at 848-49 The original charging documentation alleges that Elmes fired

shots at Marshal Clarke and at Lessroy Gumbs, that James Nathaniel and others were part of a

group ofpersons engaged in the same altercation, and that Nathaniel brandished and fired a firearm

during the incident In View of the original Information and accompanying affidavit of Detective

Flemmg Defendant Elmes could readily and reasonably infer that the People alleged that he and

others, including James Nathaniel, acted in concert and aided and abetted each other in committing

the crimes charged To the extent that Elmes claims that the Information and accompanying

affidavit, viewed jointly, fail to describe the manner by which he and Nathaniel allegedly aided Memorandum Opinion and Order People ofthe Virgin Islandr v Shaman Elmes ST l9-CR 119 Page 6 of6 2020 VI Super 65D

and abetted each other, “an information need not set forth the means by which the prosecution

hopes to prove that the defendant committed the specified offense If a defendant is in need of

more detail of the means encompassed in a particular count, a bill of particulars should be

requested ” Id 70 V l at 844-45, n 21 (citing Gov t ofthe VI v Commissiong, 706 F 2d 1172,

1181 (D V I 1989)

114 Here, the facts set forth in the affidavit accompanying the original Information provided

Defendant Elmes with sufficient notice that the People allege that he and others including James

Nathaniel, were acting in concert As Elmes “had adequate notice of the crime charged in the

amended information such that he was not surprised by the amendment,” he is not prejudiced by

the addition of the aiding and abetting element to Counts One, Three, Five and Seven of the First

Amended Information Id 70 V1 at 827

1| 15 Accordingly, on the basis of the foregoing, it is hereby

ORDERED that Plaintiff’s Motion to Amend Information is GRANTED

DATED June 7/ 2020 DOUGLAS A BRADY IUDG

ATTEST TAMARA CHARLES Clerk ofthe Court / ”-— By E// 4" CourtClerk 831nmUT