Alexis Turpin has been acquitted of the murder of her reputed husband Sherwin Johnson, which was allegedly committed on July 2, 2016.
Turpin had been on trial for this murder before Justice Jo-Ann Barlow and a jury in the Demerara High Court, but She walked out of the High Court a free woman on Wednesday after Justice Barlow upheld a no-case submission made on her behalf by Attorney-at-Law Damien Da Silva.
This was Turpin’s second trial for the capital offence. At her first trial, in 2021, she was jointly indicted with her lover, 39-year-old Sterfon Barlow, for the murder of Johnson. However, following deliberations, the jury had been unable to arrive at a verdict, and the two accused persons were further remanded to prison, pending another trial.
Freed: Alexis Turpin
However, in March 2021, Barlow pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter when he appeared before Justice Brassington Reynolds at the Demerara High Court, and was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment for the crime.
According to reports, Turpin and Johnson had parented a child, and had lived together at Chapel Street, Lodge, Georgetown. It had been reported that Johnson arrived home on July 2, 2016 and found Turpin in bed with Barlow, a mason. The heated argument that ensued between the parties escalated into a fight, during which Turpin and Barlow reportedly dealt Johnson several stabs about his body with a knife. They also reportedly lashed him with pieces of wood and a crowbar.
Following the beating, Johnson was hospitalised for several weeks at the Georgetown Public Hospital. However, after he succumbed, the charge against the duo was upgraded to murder.
During an interview with a probation officer, Barlow disclosed that Turpin would invite him to her home at nights. He revealed that on the day in question, he visited her during the day, but her reputed husband Johnson was at home. According to Barlow, an argument broke out between Turpin and Johnson, during which Johnson hit Turpin.
Barlow told the probation officer that as a result of Johnson hitting Turpin, he hollered at him. He said Johnson ran out of the house, tripped, and hit his head on the concrete stairway. He said that when Johnson got up, he armed himself with pieces of wood, attacked him, and a fight broke out between them.
The probation officer said that residents in Barlow’s neighbourhood described him as being very helpful and caring, and were shocked at his involvement in this crime. Prison officials, according to the probation officer, described him as a very quiet inmate, who attended anger management classes.
Meanwhile, family members of the late Sherwin Johnson have said their loved one had been a hardworking man who had supported his five children.
