Aeneas Wills is dead

RETIRED judge, former Queen's Counsel and former senator Aeneas Wills, 90, is dead.

Born in 1927, he passed away peacefully on Saturday (July 7) at Stirling Heights Long Term Care Home in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada. A death notice by Corbett Funeral Home said that at Wills' request, his body has been cremated, and that any expressions of sympathy can be made by way of donations to the Alzheimer's Society.

A posting on Facebook by his nephew Ken E Estrada outlined Wills achievements.

"He had a very distinguished career as a jurist - who researched and studied jurisprudence (theory of law). He served as an attorney and barrister particularly in the higher courts. He also served as a Justice in the High Courts and a Senator. He attained the level of Queen's Counsel.

"He was active in academics, as a legal writer and law lecturer in the Caribbean, England and the United States. May his soul Rest In Peace."

Otherwise, after the People's National Movement (PNM) huge electoral defeat in 1986, Wills the next year challenged Patrick Manning for PNM leadership but Manning won by 572 votes to 127 votes. Wills served as a defence attorney at the court-martial of several soldiers in the 1970 mutiny. Later as a judge, Wills in 1989 sentenced John Kalicharan to jail for 40 years for armed robbery and 30 strokes of the birch, but this penalty was overturned in 2013 by Justice Joan Charles.

Wills was the husband of Ramona Wills, father of Aeneas Wills Junior, Marilyn Wills, Felix Clarke-Wills, Adrian Clarke-Wills, Anthony Worthington Wills, Richard Clarke-Wills, Auriel Clarke-Wills, Roslyn Wills-Mohamed and David Martin, and step-father of Adrian and Simone Alexander.