I never beat Anton Cooper

Griffith went into the witness box and gave his side of the story, while his co-accused Devindra Ramdial, opted to remain silent.

Griffith, 32, said on the night in question, he reported for duty at 8.55 pm at the upper south wing of the remand section. He took up his position ten minutes later. Ramdial, he added, was the person in charge of the shift that night.

He said at about 10.25 pm, Ramdial told him that he needed assistance to remove a prisoner from one cell to another. Griffith went with Ramdial and they were joined by prison officers Clarke, Barclay, and Wilson. They went to cell number one in the "Shallow."

There were several prisoners in that cell. One of them, whom he identified as Cooper, was spitting on the gate and bawling. Ramdial spoke to the prisoner. He then opened the gate and Cooper came out. Ramdial and Wilson escorted Cooper to the bathroom, while Griffith remained near to cell number two.

Sometime later, Cooper was placed in cell number 22 and Griffith returned to his post in the upper south wing. Griffith denied that he, Ramdial or any of the other prison officers struck Cooper that night. "I did not hit, kick, or cuff Anton Cooper that night," he told the jury and alternates.

He denied having a riot baton. He had a pocket staff about 18 inches long. He also denied dragging Cooper under the shower. He said he was arrested on August 20, 2002, at the Arouca Police Station. He had gone there with the Prison Officers’ Second Division Association president and his attorney.

Under cross-examination by lead prosecutor Israel Khan SC, Griffith said when he first saw Cooper that night, there was blood flowing from a wound under his eye. He did not see any plaster under Cooper’s eye.

Griffith said when Cooper was placed in cell number 22, the prisoner had on his clothes. He said he later found out that when Cooper was found dead the next day, he was "naked as he was born."

Griffith said he gave a report to Supt of Prisons Peterson Lambert on July 22, about a month after the death of the prisoner. When asked why he took so long, Griffith replied, "Nobody asked me for a report. I saw no reason. I didn’t do anything wrong."

He denied he was cautioned by Ramdial about beating Cooper. When further cross-examined by Khan, Griffith said he came from Princes Town, the same area where Cooper lived. He used to see Cooper every two to three months, but he never saw him in prison before the night he died. He never knew him to be a mad man, spitting on anyone, or quarelling with anyone. Griffith will be further cross-examined when hearing resumes this morning.

While Ramdial chose to remain silent, he called two prison officers as his witnesses — Wayne Phillips and Renwrick Kalloo.

Phillips, of Four Roads, Diego Martin, said at about 8.30 pm on June 25, 2001, Kalloo called him to the south wing of the prison. They went to cell number 12 and they saw a prisoner with a cut under his right eye.

Kalloo opened the cell and instructed the prisoner to come out. There were more than three prisoners in that cell. They took the prisoner, whom he identified as Cooper, to the infirmary.

At the infirmary, the officers met infirmary officer Neil Bhaggan, who dressed a wound on Cooper’s face.

Kalloo said Cooper had a bruise on one knee. Bhaggan, he said, dealt with the bruise and also administered an injection to the injured prisoner.

After receiving medical attention, Cooper was taken back to the cell block, this time to the number one cell. Both prison officers denied seeing Ramdial and Griffith before they took Cooper to the infirmary. They both denied that Cooper was beaten by any prison officer that night.