Tivoli shocked by guilty plea of their former hero
BY KIMMO MATTHEWS Observer staff reporter This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Thursday, September 01, 2011
EXPRESSIONS of shock and disbelief were etched on the faces of West Kingston residents yesterday as news emerged that drug lord Christopher 'Dudus' Coke — their one-time hero — had pleaded guilty in a Manhattan, New York court.
"What you mean he pleaded guilty; you serious; that can't be real," said a woman who identified herself as a family member of Coke.
The woman was among scores of residents in the communities of Denham Town and Tivoli Gardens who reacted to media reports that Coke had pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy and one count of conspiracy to commit assault with a dangerous weapon in aid of racketeering in a plea bargain arrangement.
The news was particularly hard for residents of Tivoli Gardens who were still grieving the death of Coke's mother, Pauline 'Patsy' Haliburton, who died last week. Burton, who was ailing for some time, died a day after she was admitted to the Kingston Public Hospital. The former vendor had expressed fear last year that she would never get the chance to see her son again.
Kimoy Williams, a Tivoli resident, said she felt Coke made the decision to enter a guilty plea because of his mother's death. Haliburton, she said, was an important part of Coke's life and that her passing may have "left him a broken man".
Sam, also a resident of Tivoli, shared a similar sentiment. "The man's mother was the centre of his life, and now she [has] passed away; he may have given up," Sam surmised.
However, a fellow Tivoli resident, who identified herself only as Simone, said she felt Coke made the decision after he weighed his options. "I believe him know what him doing," said the woman.
But while some residents tried to guess reasons for Coke's guilty plea, others were left in disbelief.
"Then why would he do a thing like that. That no sound real; maybe it's not true?" said a man who was among a group that had gathered in the community.
A group of women who sat close to the man also queried whether he was forced to enter a guilty plea, while others said Coke apparently made the decision he felt was best for him. "A man has got to do what a man has got to do, and there is no two way about it," said Sam.
While he spoke, there were other residents who while not willing to talk to media were seen looking out from their homes with expressions of shock on their faces.
