Oct. 20, 2008 — A Bureau of Corrections officer was released on his own recognizance over the weekend after hitting two pedestrians and three parked cars with his Ford Explorer, but he didn't get off so easy Monday.
Instead, V.I. Superior Court Judge Brenda J. Hollar set bail at $15,000 for 53-year-old Jedwyn Frett, who has been charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm, brandishing an unlicensed firearm and ammunition, reckless driving and driving without a valid driver's license.
Frett was arrested around 12:30 p.m. Saturday after being involved in an accident Friday evening in which he hit two pedestrians and "at least" three parked cars near the intersection of the Moravian Highway and Crown Mountain Road on St. Thomas, according to V.I. Police Officer Luwana Chandler, who testified during an advice-of-rights hearing Monday in V.I. Superior Court.
Frett was speeding on the road in front of Ulla Muller Elementary School when he hit the first set of parked cars and the two pedestrians, then continued on and his Explorer landed "on top of" another vehicle, Chandler said. Frett only sustained minor injuries, but a passenger traveling with him sustained a laceration to the head, and one of the pedestrians suffered from a fractured skull, broken pelvis, bruised bladder and internal hemorrhaging, she said.
The pedestrian was later airlifted to the Dominican Republic for treatment, Chandler said. Frett was asked at the scene of the accident to produce his driver's license, which he said had expired, she said.
"Several witnesses said that Mr. Frett had also brandished a black gun, which he had pulled from his waist and had on display in front of people gathered at the scene," Chandler said. Frett's gun was later turned in to the V.I. Police Department's Firearms Bureau, where it was discovered that the license for the weapon had expired in 2002, she said. The weapon has been listed in court documents as a 40-caliber handgun.
It's not known whether Frett was given a sobriety test at the scene. The issue of driving under the influence was not raised during the hearing, and no one would say afterward whether substances were involved.
At the time of his arrest, Frett's bail was set at $25,000, but he was later released on his own recognizance by V.I. Superior Court Judge Leon Kendall, said Frett's attorney, Leonard Francis Jr., during Monday's hearing. After government attorney Claude Walker recommended that Frett's bail be set at $10,000, Francis asked Hollar to allow his client to post the money as an unsecured bond.
Hollar found probable cause to uphold the charges against Frett, and denied Francis' request.
"These are some serious offenses we're looking at," she said. "I'm not going to make any special provisions here."
In addition to the $15,000 bail, Hollar said Frett would have to surrender all of his travel documents and report daily to a probation officer. He is also not allowed to leave the territory without receiving permission from the court, she said.
Frett will be arraigned at 9 a.m. Oct 30.
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