Abortion case dismissed against son of former PM

NASSAU (CMC):

A High Court has dismissed the charges of abortion against Dr Jamil Minnis, the son of former prime minister Dr Hubert Minnis, in a case in which a 15-year-old girl ended a pregnancy.

The court also dismissed the charges against the mother and sister of the teenager on the first day trial with the prosecution now focus on rape charges against 24-year-old Alonzo Pinder, who is accused of impregnating the teenager.

The women faced charges of conspiracy to commit abortion and abortion, while the 45 year-old Dr Minnis faced a single count of abortion.

The teen’s relatives are accused of conspiring to commit the abortion between September 3 and 4 and Dr Minnis is alleged to have performed the abortion at his clinic on September 4 in 2023.

Pinder, who was granted US$9,500 bail on September 26, was charged on September 12, 2023, with having unlawful sexual relations with the girl between July 1 and 31 that year. One month later, Dr Minnis, along with the child’s 47-year-old mother and 27-year-old sister, who were granted US$15,000 bail, were accused of “intentionally and unlawfully” causing her to abort a fetus on September 4.

Following the dismissal of the charges, former prime minister Minnis described the past year as “one of the greatest hurdles” of his life and said the ordeal had taken a heavy toll on his son, who was barred from practising at Princess Margaret Hospital and placed on half pay, while continuing to run his private practice.

“I’ve been going to court in and out for over a year with him. The rest of the family, and myself, wife, all of us supporting him, and we were happy ... to hear that. I as a doctor and a gynaecologist, I looked at the case, and I mean, from my medical perspective, I didn’t think there was a case, but, you know, that’s just my opinion, and I’m very happy. I want to thank God that that is over.”

The former prime minister thanked the religious leaders and others, who stood by his family, saying their support and prayers helped him endure the ordeal and refocus on the country’s future.

“What this case has made me aware of, court representation is costly, and what it really opened my eyes to is that there are a lot of Bahamians that cannot afford legal representation.

“Therefore, I believe that a lot of individuals may have gone to jail or found guilty because of improper representation, and that is a great disadvantage for the poor and the middle-class individuals because legal representation can be very costly.

“I think moving forward, that is something I will fight to try and improve on to ensure that every citizen of this country as not only access to proper health care, but at least have access to legal representation,” the former prime minister added.