Ganja teen on $5,000 bond

Before being called upon to plead, Magistrate Rajendra Rambachan explained the meaning of the charges to the accused twice to ensure her understanding. The girl sighed several times before pleading guilty. However, after the facts of the case were read and Rambachan asked the accused to explain herself, she contested the facts of the case.

“I wasn’t lying down,” she said.

“When they (police) came in I was standing up by the door.” Rambachan immediately changed her plea from guilty to “not guilty” and placed the girl on $5,000 bond.

Before allowing the girl and her family to leave, Rambachan asked her mother, “Did you know your daughter was not at home?” “She don’t like to be home, sir,” said the mother. Rambachan advised the mother to “have a chat” with the Probation Officer downstairs the court or the Children’s Authority if she was having disciplinary issues with her daughter.