Man charged twice over same incident

A man has been cleared of the charges brought against him after a Magistrates' Court ruled that he was being tried for the second time in connection with the same incident which, it said, was in breach of the Constitution.

The court, presided over by magistrate Audrey Demicoli, heard that Emanuel Grima, 48, of Mellieha, had already been found guilty of charges related to an incident he was involved in with another man in Mellieha on April 3, 2002.

It heard that Mr Grima had two cases before two differnet magistrates on different charges but which were all committed during the same incident. In this case, Mr Grima was charged with damaging a mobile phone and a wristwatch belonging to Anthony Fava.

In the first case, Mr Grima was declared guilty of the charges brought against him.

In her judgment, Magistrate Demicoli said a person cannot be charged twice over the same incident because this was in breach of the constitution. She therefore cleared Mr Grima of the charges brought against him. Police Inspector Joseph Mercieca prosecuted while lawyer Roberto Montalto appeared for the defendant.