A 64-year-old private legal practitioner, Esther Agbodo Nyamalor, is in trouble with the law, as the Attorney-General (AG) has ordered the Tema Police to prosecute her for allegedly causing harm to a 23-year-old house-help.
The accused person, who resides in the same house with the victim, Fafaneva Ansah at Golf City, suburb of Tema, was said to have smashed the face of the victim several times with her slippers for failing to do household chores.
The victim later could not see and was sent to the Sakumono Hospital where medics referred her to the 37 Military Hospital.
She was asked to see a specialist for surgery as result of the extent of damage to the right eye.
A medical report revealed that the victim needed surgery immediately to restore her vision.
Surprisingly, when the police arraigned Lawyer Nyamalor before court, she informed the court that she had petitioned the Attorney General’s Department and wanted the advice of the AG before her plea would be taken.
On July 7, 2016, the AG’s Department directed the police to maintain the charge of causing harm against the accused person.
The prosecutor ASP Frederick Banson told the Tema Circuit Court B that in February 2015, the lawyer engaged the victim to provide domestic service for her and the 88-year-old mother.
On November 14, 2015 at about 6:00 am, the accused person asked the complainant to purchase electricity prepaid credit.
The victim returned after about three hours due to early morning rainfall and the fact that most of the sale points had not opened at the time.
The irate accused person hurled insults at the house-help and asked her to pack her personal belongings and leave her house.
The victim complied with the instructions of the accused person and packed her belongings after which she demanded her outstanding salary of GH?200.
The accused person became furious and asked the victim to immediately leave but the victim insisted on collecting her arrears.
The posture of the victim angered the accused person who threatened to beat her up.
The accused person stood up and walked towards her bedroom but later used her slippers to hit her several times in the face which caused harm to her eye.
The victim lodged a formal complaint with the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Tema Regional Police and a medical report form was issued to her to attend to hospital for treatment.
The medical officer, who examined the victim, indicated that “the client is at the moment blind in the right eye and needs to undergo a surgery to restore her vision.”
The accused person was granted bail pending the advice of the A-G’s Department.
The AG’s Department subsequently asked the police to proceed with the investigations and ensure that the lawyer faces the full rigors of the law.
From Vincent Kubi, Tema