Driver not happy with Beyond the Tape explanation for arrest warrant

THE driver who paid her traffic ticket in 2016, but last week learned there was a warrant for her arrest on the police’s public affairs programme Beyond the Tape, is not satisfied with a lack of an apology and an attempt to justify the police’s actions by one of the hosts.

On Wednesday, the woman’s attorneys again wrote to Caribbean Communications Network (CCN), the parent company for TV6, complaining that while on Monday’s programme an attempt was made to explain the issuance of the arrest warrant, one of the hosts also tried to justify it by implying there was a disconnect between the police and the court and once a warrant was issued, the police must act.

However, attorney Dereck Balliram said the explanation was misleading and represented a “useless attempt to justify the defamation” to his client.

Balliram said the court does not, on its own accord, issue warrants for the arrest of an accused person as a police officer would have to go on oath to give evidence to secure such a warrant.

“Our client repeats that at the time the warrant was procured, there was no proper investigation on whether the ticket was in fact paid.

“The omission and negligence of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service continued thereafter, resulting in the defamatory publication.”

He said the attempt by one of the hosts, a senior member of the police service, “to mislead the viewing public of Trinidad and Tobago on its unjustifiable actions is a dereliction in duty in and of itself.”

Balliram said the defamatory publication and lack of apology from the Beyond the Tape hosts and the Caribbean Communication Network has aggravated the loss, humiliation and embarrassment she has suffered.

Balliram’s client, this week, threatened to take the deputy Police Commissioner and CCN to court over the embarrassment she endured when her name, photograph and address were aired on Beyond the Tape’s Most Wanted segment for failing to pay her traffic ticket for breaching a traffic sign in 2015.

She paid the ticket in 2016 and has a receipt from the court to show she paid the ticket.

Balliram said the segment “erroneously, falsely and maliciously” highlighted that his client was a person of interest and there was an outstanding warrant for her arrest for failing to pay her traffic ticket.

He said she is unaware of any warrant, nor has she ever evaded the law, and a careful and thorough investigation by the police would have revealed she had paid her fine.

“This matter has resulted in extreme embarrassment, distress and anxiety to our client as the allegations of the existence of an outstanding warrant was published and broadcast to the viewing population of TT and continues to be accessible by millions of viewers around the world by live stream on the TV6 website.”

Balliram had asked if there was a warrant, that this be rectified.

To CCN, the attorney complained that no proper investigation was done before his client’s image and address were broadcast, saying the “defamatory words” of the hosts of the programme brought her into “ridicule, hatred and contempt.”

He wanted the television network to remove his client’s photograph, address and name from the programme’s most-wanted segment, as well as an apology, a reasonable proposal for compensation and legal costs.