Georgetown woman sentenced to seven years for fatal stabbing

Appearing before Chief Justice (ag) Navindra Singh at the High Court in Demerara, 23-year-old Shamirika Gibson was on Wednesday sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment. She had previously pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter in the death of 21-year-old Carol Davidson.Gibson, formerly of North East La Penitence Squatting Area, Georgetown, had initially faced a murder indictment but opted to plead guilty to manslaughter based on a statement of agreed facts.She was represented by attorney-at-law Madan Kissoon, while the State’s case was led by attorneys Simran Gajraj, Christopher Belfield, and Geneva Wills.Chief Justice Singh had earlier accepted the plea and ordered a series of pre-sentencing reports—including probation, prison conduct, and victim impact assessments—before determining the sentence.According to the facts admitted by Gibson, on June 6, 2022, Davidson was in a yard at East Ruimveldt Squatting Area, Georgetown, when Gibson and her sister confronted her. During the confrontation, Gibson pulled a knife from her jacket and stabbed Davidson. The injured woman ran to the back of the yard but collapsed shortly after.During the police investigation, Gibson provided a video-recorded interview explaining how she inflicted the wound and later accompanied investigators to the scene. A post-mortem examination confirmed that Davidson died from a perforation of the heart caused by a stab wound to the chest.With Wednesday’s ruling, Gibson will now begin serving her seven-year sentence for the killing.