SANTA CRUZ, St Elizabeth — The courtroom in this usually quiet town became the center of political and legal attention on Monday, as embattled Spanish Town Mayor Norman Scott made his first appearance in court following an altercation that unfolded on election day.
The mayor, who recently lost his bid to represent St Elizabeth South Eastern in the September 3 General Election, is now at the heart of a criminal case stemming from a tense encounter with Julie Francis, a Jamaica Labour Party agent stationed at BB Coke High School.
Inside the courtroom, the legal showdown took form: Scott was flanked by his attorney, Charles Ganga-Singh, while the complainant arrived under the legal stewardship of a heavyweight team led by King’s Counsel Tom Tavares-Finson. The air was thick with anticipation.
Scott entered a not guilty plea to charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and malicious destruction of property. The charges relate to a scuffle that allegedly broke out after the mayor exceeded his designated time at a polling station. Law enforcement officers reported that a reminder from a political agent about the time limit sparked a confrontation, culminating in one agent reportedly being struck in the face by the mayor before his security team escorted him out.
After the altercation, the police launched a formal investigation, which culminated in a summons issued on September 12. By Monday, Scott was formally ordered to have his fingerprints recorded as part of the ongoing proceedings.
In a pointed message delivered to the media, Tavares-Finson confirmed his intention to pursue a fiat from the Director of Public Prosecutions to handle the case directly. His posture suggested this would be more than a routine courtroom scuffle—it may become a legal showdown with broader political reverberations.
Scott’s lawyer, when initially approached, refused to comment. Later, in a measured yet firm WhatsApp response, Ganga-Singh dismissed concerns about facing a legal team of Tavares-Finson’s stature: “Whether Tom alone, or Tom and 99 of his associates, I am fully ready to defend the matter.”
The case is set to resume on November 27 in the St Elizabeth Parish Court. Until then, all eyes remain fixed on what could evolve into one of the more high-profile courtroom battles in the post-election landscape.
