After nine years, David Swain will now be answering murder charges for the death of his wife.

It is alleged that Swain drowned Shelley Arden Tyre, 46, on March 12, 1999 near the Twin Wrecks Mary L and Pat off Cooper Island, where she and Swain had been scuba diving together.

The Providence Journal and the Rhode Island press have given significant coverage to the case since Swain left Tortola in 1999 after local police initially listed his wife death as an accident.

He was extradited here on February 13, 2008 and the charges now brought against Swain in the Virgin Islands were read to him on February 14, 2008. He will remain in custody until his April 17 court date.

A local press statement stated the allegations against Swain were outlined by Senior Crown Counsel Grace Henry-McKenzie who said the Crown’s case relies on circumstantial evidence gathered during investigations by the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force and through depositions from witnesses who testified in a related civil trial in the United States.

Let us stop, and pause for a minute to recap what had happened in the Territory based on information provided by the RVIPF at the time of the incident.

The local police had said Tyre and Swain, both experienced divers, became separated as they were diving over the wrecks of two tugboats off Cooper Island.

The local law enforcement authourities were persuaded to take another look at the case after Tyre’s parents won a successful wrongful-death civil suit against Swain in 2006.

During the testimony of the chief medical examiner for Miami/Dade County in Florida in the civil lawsuit against Swain, Dr. Bruce A. Hyma had said that after reviewing the evidence in the scuba diving death of Shelley Tyre he believed “this is a homicidal drowning.”

Dr. Hyma also said “some type of terminal violence occurred that deprived her of her air supply.’’ That violence, he said, was caused “by another individual.’’

These were part of the depositions that led to the case being reopened here.

This begs the question.  What went wrong? And why was the case closed and only reopened after the civil suit was won?

According to an interview done by the Beacon Newspaper with Tyre’s family lawyer, J. Renn Olenn, he stated that the case really began as soon as Swain had left Tortola in 1999.

The lawyer explained in the interview that a qualified police diver could not be found during the weekend to search the underwater crime site.

This in itself can be noted as a major set back in the case and can probably be one of the reasons Swain was allowed to leave the Territory in the first place.

Secondly, Swain was not allowed to leave until an autopsy was done but when it was done he was allowed to leave.

The lawyer further stated that by that time police were aware of “suspicious circumstances” but they were unable to act.

The lawyer also stated that information was not brought to the police until after Swain had left the island and that the local police force had its hands tied geographically.

I am still trying to understand: Information was not brought to the police until Swain left the island. Was the police waiting for information? Whose fault it was that there was not a qualified diver? Whose fault it was that justice might only be served now nine years later due to someone giving the information late to the police or action not be taken within a certain time because of lack of resources?

On the contrary, Swain is maintaining his innocence and a man is innocent until proven guilty. Even though the family won the lawsuit for wrongful death it does not mean that Swain would be found guilty for murdering his wife.

Therefore, it will be important to let the judicial system decide, based on evidence provided on whether Swain is guilty or not for the death of his wife.

On January 25 in Rhode Island, Swain waived his right to fight extradition. His decision sped the process of his transfer to Tortola, and according to one of his lawyers, Jeffrey A. Denner, Swain is anxious to clear his name.

Let us hope this time around, we make use of all our resources or import those that we do not have to ensure justice is served.

As the legal statement rightly states, Justice Delayed is Justice Denied. The Territory should not be blamed for denied justice in this case or any others. Let justice prevail!!

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