By Breaking Belize News Staff: An unusual domestic dispute involving a father, his teenage daughter, and his ex-common-law wife has raised serious legal questions in the Magistrate’s Court, with the Chief Magistrate openly questioning whether the accused is facing double jeopardy.
Forty-one-year-old taxi driver Johnny Stewart of Dunn Street appeared unrepresented before the Chief Magistrate on Wednesday, charged with theft in relation to an alleged incident involving his 18-year-old daughter. The young woman claimed that on December 22, 2025, her father went to their home, demanded her cellphone, struck her, forcibly removed two gold chains from her neck, and left with them.
Stewart pleaded guilty with an explanation, admitting he overreacted after learning that his daughter had allegedly not been attending college for nearly a year despite his belief that she was enrolled. However, the Chief Magistrate rejected the guilty plea, entered an equivocal not guilty plea, and granted Stewart bail in the sum of $800 with one surety of the same amount. He was ordered to stay at least 100 feet away from both his daughter and her mother.
Complicating the matter further, Stewart was immediately taken back into police custody after meeting bail, as police indicated they intended to charge him with burglary based on a separate complaint made by his ex-common-law wife — the mother of his two daughters, in relation to the same incident.
This development prompted sharp concern from the Chief Magistrate, who questioned why two separate charges were being pursued for events allegedly arising from the same set of circumstances on the same day. The court noted that the alleged theft appeared to be encompassed within the burglary allegation, describing the situation as bordering on “double jeopardy.”
Additional concern was raised over police procedures, including testimony that the Domestic Violence Unit does not accept reports from former partners who are no longer living together — a policy the Chief Magistrate said she intends to discuss with the Director of the DVU.
Both the 18-year-old daughter and her mother have been summonsed to appear in court on Friday, January 2, 2025, when the matter will resume. Stewart is expected to answer to the burglary charge after being granted police bail, allowing him to remain out of custody over the New Year period.
The post Father facing double jeopardy with theft and burglary charges after allegedly taking away daughter’s cellphone and gold chains after finding out she dropped out of school a year ago appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Breaking Belize News Staff: An unusual domestic dispute involving a father, his teenage daughter, and his ex-common-law wife has raised serious legal questions in the Magistrate’s Court, with the Chief Magistrate openly questioning whether the accused is facing double jeopardy. Forty-one-year-old taxi driver Johnny Stewart of Dunn Street appeared unrepresented before the Chief Magistrate
The post Father facing double jeopardy with theft and burglary charges after allegedly taking away daughter’s cellphone and gold chains after finding out she dropped out of school a year ago appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
