ÐÓ°ÉÐÔ°É

The phrase 'God and time' is on the lips of upbeat fans of dancehall superstar Vybz Kartel following the commencement of arguments before the United Kingdom-based Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC).

Kartel, whose given name is Adidja Palmer, and co-convicts Shawn 'Storm' Campbell, Kahira Jones and Andre 'Mad Suss' St John's are asking the court to quash their March 2014 conviction for the murder of their associate, Clive 'Lizard' Williams.

The four men were sentenced to life imprisonment.

The JCPC commenced hearing the appeal yesterday, with the proceedings scheduled for two days, concluding today.

Kartel's lawyer, Isat Buchanan, said the entertainer was "anxious" for the judges in the country's highest court to set him and his colleagues free. The entertainer has so far failed to convince a trial court and the court of appeal in Jamaica that he should not be behind bars.

Yesterday, the question of whether Justice Lennox Campbell was obligated to dismiss a tainted juror was among the issues that dominated day one.

King's Counsel Hugh Southey argued that the trial judge should have aborted the trial when it was discovered that one of the jurors, Livingston Caine, attempted to bribe the other jurors by offering $500,000 in exchange for a not-guilty verdict.

Cain, was later tried and sentenced to nine months in prison for the offence.

In addition to the jury tampering issue, the law lords are being asked to consider whether the trial judge should have excluded the telecommunications evidence relied on by the prosecution. This ground of appeal raises issues of broad importance regarding constitutional rights protection under the Jamaican Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms.

Meanwhile, Buchanan, who addressed the law lords yesterday, said it was too early to assess the matter, but he remained confident that Kartel and his co-convicts will be freed.

"I maintain my position -- the constitution is supreme, made by us for us, with the Charter Amendment of 2011 ensuring the rights of the least among us is protected," he told THE STAR.

"To the fans, [it's just] God and time [because] the jury was tainted and one cannot proviso injustice," said a confident Buchannan.