By Sanna Camara
Lawyers at the Center for Justice and Accountability (CJA) have explained that Michael Sang Correa is still facing charges of torture of all the other victims described in his indictment, despite the dismissal of Count 5 charge based on absence of a witness.
When the trial began on Monday, the prosecution had asked the court to “dismiss without prejudice” Count 5 in the indictment, relating to the torture and attempt to torture Victim No. 4 (Mr Bunja Darboe). This happened just before the jury selection.
“Dismissal without prejudice” in the US criminal justice system means that such a charge can be refiled later if new evidence or circumstance, such as witness availability, emerges.
“The dismissal was only of one count, and the trial proceeds as to all other counts,” Claret Vargas, Senior Staff Attorney at CJA, said.
“The prosecution requested ‘dismissal without prejudice’, meaning they could bring the charge again,” Vargas further explained.
Although the trial is expected to go on as scheduled for the next two weeks, should there be any change or any rescheduling of the trial – a situation the lawyers described as extremely unlikely – the prosecution believes that the circumstances of Bunja Darboe (Victim 4) could change.
Meanwhile, the witness in question Bunja Darboe is a colonel in the Gambia Armed Forces, acclaimed for his contribution to enhancing the capacity of military personnel for international peacekeeping missions.
Colonel Darboe testified before The Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation, and Reparations Commission (TRRC) in June 2019, shedding light on events during the regime of former President Yahya Jammeh.
His testimony has contributed to the Commission’s efforts to uncover human rights abuses under the regime.
In 2024, Colonel Darboe testified in Switzerland during the trial of Ousman Sonko, Gambia’s former interior minister, who faced charges of crimes against humanity. Darboe recounted his arrest and torture by the Junglers, a paramilitary group under Jammeh’s regime, and highlighted Sonko’s role in these abuses.
His experience revealed harrowing details of the torture he endured following his alleged involvement in the 2006 coup attempt against Yahya Jammeh’s regime.,
His absence from this trial in Denver has led the prosecution to file for the dismissal of the indictment relevant to his testimony as a torture victim.
The defense did not object and Count 5 was dismissed without prejudice. The remaining charges, 5 additional counts of torture and conspiracy to torture, are unaffected.
