Witness: I saw shooting from up close

The 12-member panel of jurors and three alternates heard from Rhondall Feelds that Solomon was slapped twice by Burnett after bumping into the officer while jumping up in the party.

Solomon retaliated, Feelds said, and slapped Burnett once before stumbling onto the officer, placing both hands on Burnett’s shoulders to break the fall. Although Feelds did not see Solomon bump into Burnett, he said he "inferred" that was what had happened when Burnett slapped Solomon.

According to Feelds, Burnett pulled out a gun and shot Solomon at close range in the chest. He said Solomon looked at him (Feelds), pointed to the bullet wound and turned away. He heard another shot and saw Cato slump to the ground. Feelds said Burnett was walking around with the gun in his hand saying, "I is police, I is police, do something," and was biting his bottom lip. He said Burnett walked over to another man and spoke to him. He (Feelds) averted his eyes to look at Kevin on the ground, and when he looked back to the place where Burnett was last standing, the officer was gone.

He said about 20 minutes elapsed between the slapping and the shooting.

Both Cato and Solomon were rushed to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital, where Cato later died.

Burnett, 32, of St Barbs Road, Belmont, is on trial before Justice Ian Stuart Brook at the Port-of-Spain Fourth Criminal Court charged with the murder.

Feelds maintained that neither he nor his friends had knives in their possession at the fete. He said they had all gone through and cleared two check points, and had also been frisked and scanned. The accused, Feelds said, had nothing but the gun in his hand.

Hearing continues on March 2.