Family of Melissa Silvera says sentence for Jolyan Silvera should have been longer

A relative of Melissa Silvera, who was murdered by her husband, Jolyan Silvera, today said the family had hoped for a longer sentence.

The former People’s National Party Member of Parliament was this afternoon sentenced to 20 years and 10 months in prison for the 2023 killing of his wife at their Stony Hill, St Andrew home.

Walter-Dre Davis, a cousin of the deceased, told the media following the hearing that the family was satisfied justice had been delivered, though they believe Silvera should spend more time behind bars.

Davis said the family felt the aggravating factors in the case outweighed the mitigating ones.

“We are happy that justice was done, but we are a little bit unhappy,” Davis said, adding that the family would have preferred a 25-year sentence.

“We thought that the aggravating factors would have been more than the mitigating factors. But it is what it is, and we definitely have to recognise that he has to do the time for the crime that he committed.”

Davis said the family will continue to support the couple’s sons as they cope with the aftermath of the tragedy.

“We will continue as a family to wrap our arms around them,” he said.

Meanwhile, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Claudette Thompson said she believes justice was served following Silvera’s sentencing.

Speaking in a separate interview with reporters after the sentencing, Thompson rejected suggestions that the public was critical of her office for accepting a lesser charge of manslaughter.

“The defence was manslaughter, and we got 20 years and 10 months… for murder. Sometimes the sentence is just that—20 years or less—so justice… My position is this: most persons, when they hear ‘manslaughter,’ think of a motor vehicle accident and someone has died, so education was required. I didn’t feel like the public was on my back at all,” she said.

“So no, I never felt like the public was on my back at all.”

She added that decisions made by the prosecution were guided strictly by the law and the evidence.

“When we have a file and we read and prepare it, we look at the law, and this decision was made based on law. That’s it,” she said.

- Andre Williams

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