L.A. Lewis Not Worried About Bench Warrant Issued For His Arrest, Says Judge Is ‘Feisty And Bright’

Paramount Chief High Priest and entertainer L.A. Lewis has declared that the bench warrant which has been issued to compel him to attend court is “unlawful”, and tantamount to “kidnapping”.

“I only entertained her (the judge) two times by making a guest appearance in court…you cannot issue a bench warrant for someone who has not broken the law,” the entertainer, whose real name is Horace Lewis, told DancehallMag.

A bench warrant was issued after he failed to show for his scheduled matter in the St Catherine Parish Court last Wednesday. His failure to appear triggered the bench warrant, which is issued to compel persons to attend court if they fail to do so.

“If they attempt to lock me up, it is kidnapping plain and simple. I am not a Jamaican, I am not a black man, I am a Maroon, a tribal sovereign, and native of the Nyan-Ko-Pong Maroons, Turtle Island. The judge herself knows that locking me up is an attempt at kidnapping, a breach of human rights laws and conduct at the international level.”

Lewis, who has rechristened himself the ‘Paramount Chief High Priest of the Nyan-Ko-Pong Maroons’, has repeatedly posited in interviews that the Westminster Law cannot charge anyone who lays claim to being a Maroon. He believes that Maroon Law allows him the right to cultural integrity, the right to self-determination, and the right to equality before the law and freedom from discrimination.

Maroons are classified under international law — as minorities, as tribal peoples, or as some other entity, and so enjoy largely the same rights as indigenous peoples under international law. Some nation-states have also ratified International Labor Organization Convention No. 169 (ILO 169), which deals exclusively with the rights of indigenous and tribal peoples. The rights of Maroon individuals and collectivities are also protected under these instruments.

“The government can touch me, but there will be repercussions. I am a sovereign tribal Maroon. I have breached no international law with their colonial business, none of their colonial maritime law.  We have our own sovereign legal team, our own constitution…the tribal native government has offices all over the world,” he said.

The last time L.A Lewis made a court appearance, he was ordered to do a psychiatric evaluation. He is charged jointly with Ras Nature Forever and Ras Wadewade Selassie I for breaches of the Disaster Risk Management Act (DRMA).

When the matter was mentioned last Wednesday, Lewis’s two co-accused were present, and had their bail extended until April 13. But L.A Lewis is unruffled by the howling and bellows of the local court. He had bigger fish to fry last week.

“I was attending to Maroon government business, plus the judge is feisty and bright,” he said.

Lewis seems to be turning his attention towards more pressing matters of national significance.

“The Prime Minister Andrew Holness is attempting to intimidate me rather than debate me on this COVID-19 issue. It has been one year now since I have been requesting a debate so that I can raise questions. I am glad that Sizzla, Ginjah and Buju Banton have been talking on behalf of the people,” he said.

Ginjah and Sizzla have recorded songs hitting out against the COVID-19 vaccine, while Buju Banton has ranted at length about the draconian measures implemented by the government to combat the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

“We need to ask why people are being paid $10,000 to take the vaccine when poor people downtown can’t even get some money to buy food. The minimum wage is US$40 per week, what that can do? I am here to defend the police dem pay and bring to light the bad treatment of the police by the government,” LA. Lewis said.

The appearance of Lewis and the others in court arose from an incident in October 3, 2020 in Spanish Town. The allegations are that they were protesting orders by the Government for persons to wear masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The police instructed that the group disperse but they refused and were subsequently arrested.

He is known for songs such as ‘Gaza World’ and ‘Lil Stupid’ featuring Blacksan, but his greatest claim to fame is as a ‘agent provocateur’ in the world of dancehall and graffiti art.