Guilty as charged

WESTERN BUREAU:

Doujon Griffiths, who was on trial in the United States (US) for the murder of fellow Montegonian Massania Malcolm and her one-year-old daughter, Jordania Reid, was found guilty yesterday in the Orange County courthouse in Orlando, Florida, and is to be sentenced on November 16.

The 26-year-old Griffiths, who, like his victims, is originally from Glendevon in Montego Bay, St James, reportedly shot and killed Malcolm, who was 20 years old at the time, and left her body and her daughter in a car in an outdoor parking lot on Lake Ellenor Drive in Orlando. The child reportedly died from suffocation caused by the intense heat inside the vehicle.

The trial, which started on Monday, concluded yesterday with Griffiths being convicted on all counts in a six-count indictment, which included charges of first-degree murder with a firearm; first-degree murder; attempted first-degree murder with a firearm; and shooting at, within, or into a building.

Before the shooting, Griffiths had reportedly shot and seriously wounded Jordane ‘Sinnaway’ Reid, Malcolm’s boyfriend and the father of her child. Reid, who suffered multiple gunshot wounds when he was attacked, was hospitalised for several months.

Despite fleeing the state and altering his appearance by growing dreadlocks, Griffiths was spotted and arrested during a traffic stop in New Jersey on March 26, 2024.

He was subsequently extradited to Florida, where he was charged with premeditated first-degree murder, first-degree murder with a firearm, and attempted first-degree murder.

When news of Malcolm’s and her daughter’s deaths first came to light in Montego Bay, it caused a stir across the western city, as her mother, Latoya ‘Budeisha’ Reid, was a renowned figure on the city’s social and entertainment circuit before migrating to the US.

Griffiths was on the radar of the local police for gangland activities when he fled the island in 2020 and reportedly entered the US illegally via Miami. He was reportedly homeless for a while before he encountered Reid, who was a childhood friend.

Griffiths is said to have told Reid about his homelessness, leading Reid and Malcolm to decide to take him into their home until he was able to get his life together.

However, when the trial started on Monday, the court was told that after spending some six weeks with the couple, Griffiths showed no inclination towards seeking employment and, with him not contributing to household expenses, he was asked to leave.

On the morning of the shooting, Griffiths reportedly indicated that he was ready to move out and asked the couple to drop him off at the bus stop, and they agreed. However, as soon as they began walking towards the couple’s car, Griffiths reportedly pulled a firearm and began firing shots at Reid, who fled into the neighbourhood despite being hit multiple times.

Griffiths reportedly ordered Malcolm and her child into the car at gunpoint and then drove away. The car was found two days later, abandoned in the parking lot on Lake Ellenor Drive. Police found the bodies of Malcolm and her daughter inside.

When the trial started, Reid was among the first people to take the witness stand.

“Did Mr Griffith say anything to you?” the prosecutor asked Reid, in reference to what transpired before he was shot.

“Yes,” replied Reid.

“What did he say?” continued the prosecutor.

“He said, ‘I am gonna kill you’. That’s what he said,” continued Reid.

While Florida uses the death penalty, prosecutors have indicated that they will not be seeking it for Griffiths – a declaration that has not gone down well with at least one friend of the deceased woman.

“I wanted them to find him guilty and feed him to the electric chair ... ,” she said.

adrian.frater@gleanerjm.com