St. Vincent prosecutor to drop charges against teacher Adriana King

The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in St. Vincent and the Grenadines has announced it will not pursue criminal charges against educator and activist Adriana King. King had been accused of attempting to block former Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves from entering Parliament on August 5, 2021.

While the Court of Appeal recently overturned a previous magistrate's order that had stayed the case, Crown Counsel Cornelius Tittle stated the DPP's office is interested only in clarifying the legal point regarding when a magistrate can stay a matter due to delay, rather than prosecuting King. The case will be remitted to the magistrate's court, where the prosecution is expected to formally discontinue the charges.

Following the announcement, King expressed that she does not feel “freed” by the procedural end of the case. In a radio interview, she noted that the end of the prosecution does not equate to an affirmative exoneration nor does it resolve the psychological, financial, and professional trauma experienced by her family since the charges were brought in 2021.