Sorry Diane but you know NOTHING about this man and you are casting aspersions about him in public forums? And who do you propose to "check" him out the same people youth protective services, that allowed her to die by their inaction?
Last night, we told you how the American couple, Anke and David Doehm were arraigned an remanded on the first charge that somehow links them to the death of their adopted daughter Faye Lin Cannon.
They are at prison awaiting their next adjournment date on the offense of "cruelty to a child", but it caused a great stir on Facebook today, when this picture was posted. We can't say for sure that this is Anke Doehm, but the rumors where that she was at a bank, when she should have been in jail. That led to all kind of speculation that she was being treated preferentially, or that she had been granted bail.
We've confirmed with multiple different authorities that she hasn't gotten a bail hearing as yet, but, the couple's attorneys are working hard to make that next step. Yesterday, Richard "Dickey" Bradley made the point that from his perspective they are entitled to bail since this only an allegation against them:
Dickie Bradley - Attorney for David Doehm "There is a serious matter, a child has lost her life`. They are not charged for that matter. They are charged for somehow neglecting - that is what is on the charge sheet - due to their neglect of the child. Which is an allegation against them. It's a serious matter, but it is an allegation and from your experience you know the Supreme Court has granted bail to other persons who have had far more serious allegations that neglecting a child. So that we have said from the outset and we advised the two accused persons that it is a matter that should best be dealt with at the Supreme Court level. Speaking of the supreme court the learned DPP has also indicated that these allegations will not be tried in a magistrate court in Belie - that she is going to take it to a supreme court where there will be a jury and a judge and there is a more chance of a better ventilation of the pros and the cons of the matter."
It is expected that the attorneys will try to expedite a bail hearing before a Supreme Court judge.
Doehm couple went to bank before they went to jail
A photograph of Anke Doehm has been making the rounds on social media. The photo is taken from afar, but it shows Anke lining up inside the Belize Bank. When we contacted Attorney Dickie Bradley about this photo, he offered that if the Doehms were in the bank, there would be nothing improper and illegal about it because they are entitled under proper escort and security to access their funds providing there was a removal order from the court. In this case, they would have been allowed to withdraw funds in order to pay a court fine imposed when they were originally arrested in the ongoing investigation in the death of their daughter thirteen-year old Faye Linn Cannon. That charge was for a small quantity of a controlled drug - about point one seven ounces - found in their condo in the island. When they appeared at the San Pedro court, Anke pleaded not guilty, while David, who holds permanent residency, pleaded guilty to the charge of possession of a controlled drug,Diazapam, which is essentially valium used for anxiety disorders, alcohol withdrawal and muscle spasms.David was charged one hundred and eighty five dollars and this is money he needed to pay the fine. Following that charge they were transferred to Belize City.
Bradley told News Five that the Doehms were taken to the bank under police escort earlier in the week before they were charged with “Cruelty to a Child." Bradley confirmed that tonight they are behind bars at the Central prison pending a bail application before the Supreme Court next week. Police, in the meantime, continue to collect information on the death of Faye Linn who died of compression to the chest. A post mortem also confirmed that she had been sexually and physically abused and there were other significant injuries. The Director of Public Prosecutions told the court on Thursday in Belize City that "We don't very often see this degree of criminality. The observation section of the post mortem report reads like a horror story and the doctor says, of course with the caveat that we don't want to try the case here, but that he observed fresh injuries, old injuries and all of them significant injuries."
David and Anke Doehm to seek bail on child cruelty charge this Friday
The bail application for David and Anke Doehm, the American couple charged with cruelty to late thirteen-year-old daughter Faye Lin Cannon, will be heard at the Supreme Court on Friday. Attorney for David Doehm, Richard 'Dickie' Bradley, confirmed this afternoon to News Five that he and Anke's attorney, Senior Counsel Ellis Arnold, have filed their papers and secured a hearing date. The couple was arrested following the discovery of Faye Lin's battered body two weeks ago at their apartment in the north of the island. Last Thursday, David and Anke were charged with cruelty to a child and denied bail by Chief Magistrate Ann-Marie Smith. Faye Lin's siblings are in contact with their adoptive father and under the care of the Department of Human Services. When we last checked, there is not enough evidence to press murder charges against the couple, but police continue to gather information on the couple.
From channel 7 news: Jorge Aldana - San Pedro Resident "The people of San Pedro, few residents some of the residents of San Pedro and some of Belize had approached me to come in and apply for permission to protest tomorrow in front of the supreme court right across from Battlefield Park. We walked in with Mr. Elrington this evening and the officer command Eastern Division has used the law to deny us the application to protest. She cited that we needed 36 hours for us to apply for the permission to protest. So she used that portion of the law to deny us that application. They are still coming out, my understanding is about the group that has been mobilized is still coming out tomorrow. I managed to sit down with Mrs. Desiree Phillips and we went over what is expected. I told her that the group decided that if the application is the denied then we will use our second constitutional right which is to picket. The purpose of this protest is to show the public and to indicate to the legislative and the other responsible bodies in the country that we will keep a watchful eye when it comes to the Faye Lin case. I think the Faye Lin, the system failed and the community failed Faye Lin. We cannot allow the system to fail her once again. I believe and the crowd believe as a matter of fact the residents and the people outside of San Pedro believed that if bail is granted to Faye Lin's adopted parents who are in custody they are a high risk than they may abscond. We have seen this over and over in other cases in Belize."
We'll be there tomorrow, and we'll tell you how the bail hearing goes for the Doehms.
David and Anke Doehm apply for bail; David Cannon seeks custody of his daughters
David and Anke Doehm are to appear for a bail hearing on Friday, July 21st at Belize City's Supreme Court for the charges of cruelty to a child. The Doehms are the main suspects in the tragic death of Anke's adoptive daughter, 13-year-old Faye Lin Cannon. At such, Faye's siblings have been under the care of Belize's Department of Human Services since July 6th, and while their fate is uncertain, their adoptive father, David Cannon has travelled to Belize from the United States of America (USA) to try obtaining custody of the three girls.
According to Usher, Cannon lives in the USA, and travelled frequently to Belize to visit his adoptive daughters. It was also revealed that he was providing his ex-wife Anke with $5,400US monthly as child support. Usher did not offer any further information regarding the case and only mentioned that Cannon is in the country to protect his daughters, and to assume the role of father for his girls.
Residents on Ambergris Caye have made plans to travel to Belize City for the bail hearing on Friday morning. The purpose is to hold a peaceful protest outside the Supreme Court and raise awareness, asking the court to deny the Doehms' bail.
Click here to read the rest of the article in the San Pedro Sun
Actually RobertJ, it seems that they followed the law. There was not enough evidence for a murder charge. The couple was entitled to bail legally for what they were charged for.
As sad as that is that they may walk, this reinforces a couple of things.
Belize needs a forensics lab and much better police training to collect evidence and...
If you are an American and get arrested on some trumped up charges with zero evidence (and I am not insinuating that the Doehms were arrested this way), you will get to post bail, instead of being held unlawfully forever such as a place like Iran or North Korea.
And it shows a need for a much better cooperation between social workers, the police and in this case, the US embassy.
Whatever happens with this case, I hope lessons were learned and it never happens again.
Are the authorities just supposed to hang them at high noon from the San Pedro clock tower because people on the island and the internet said they were guilty?????
Bail For US Couple Accused of Cruelty To Deceased Child, Court Unconvinced They are Flight Risks
Last night, we told you how a group of San Pedro residents intended to stage a protest in front of the Supreme Court. They were there to demand that Americans David and Anke Doehm to remain in jail while the await a criminal trial related to the death of their 13 year-old adopted daughter Faye Lin Cannon.
A small group of protesters showed up to the Battlefield Park, and chanted loudly, making a peaceful but disruptive stance at the courthouse. But, though they disturbed the business of court, they still couldn't prevent the judge from ruling that the couple should be released, while they await trial for the offense of cruelty to a child.
Our news team was at court before hearings started, until the moment when the couple were freed. Daniel Ortiz reports:
Daniel Ortiz reporting
After successfully convincing Justice Hanomansingh to grant them bail, David and Anke Doehm were escorted out of the Supreme Court to be processed for their release. They had been incarcerated for 15 days, and as soon as they could leave, they jumped into a vehicle which moved off with haste.
The couple was definitely trying to avoid small but boisterous crowd of protesters in Battlefield Park. For the entire 2 and a half hours of the court hearing, this small but spirited crowd shouted at the top of their lungs.
Michelle Huber - San Pedro Resident "We are here for one thing: Justice for Faye and I pray to the Lord to lay his hands on this nation, because this has been too many murders."
Karen Banner - Orange Walk Resident "I am tired of seeing my youths murdered on the streets of Belize City. I am tired of seeing mothers cry. I am tired of seeing single parents with no assistance. We are asking for justice. We will not be quite. I will not be quite. We are tired. All we are asking for is Justice for Faye, justice for Pastor Lucas and there are many more, there are many more murders that has not been solve and we want justice."
Jose UC Espat - Belize City Activist "It hurts to see people murdered. It hurts that no one comes and stands for the right thing. But when there are concerts there are people by the thousands. We need to focus on this entire nation and put a stop to this. Enough is enough. When will enough be enough Belize?"
Golda Swift - San Pedro Resident "There is dead child on our hands, there is blood on our hands. As a Belizean citizen and as an educator for over 20 years I have to say we need to stand up. We cannot let these things happen in our country, especially to children and let it go by."
Kera Garbutt - Ladyville "I don't live in San Pedro, I am from Ladyville, but when I heard the news about what happened to baby Faye, it touches me deep, because I have a little girl that is 15 years old. If it was me and if I had a man and they (the police) came to my house to find my 13 year old daughter dead, we definitely would have gotten charge for murder the same day. We would have been spending our time in jail until our case comes up to prove that it's not us who kill the person. At the end of the day we don't want them to get bail."
The DPP's Office made a strong effort to object to the couple being released on bail, because from the prosecution's perspective, they are a flight risk. Crown Counsel Jacqueline Willoughby tried to convince the Justice Hanomansingh of this, but after considering the lengthy arguments from both sides, the judge did not agree.
Jacqueline Willoughby - Crown Counsel "It is the position our office that they have become a flight risks. One of the issues is you have to be able to take care of yourself in Belize. Their business is down. One of the petitioners have been release of his employment. They really have no other means here. They have no property. The issue of the children are in human services. There is matters before other courts that custody is being sought by the adopted father. It is our view in our office that there is really no reason for them to stay here. This charge will yield them prison time of up to 10 years. But at the end of the day, it is in the discretion of the judge to determine whether or not he would give bail."
Daniel Ortiz "Are you satisfied with the positions you made trying to counter the arguments from the defense attorneys?"
Jacqueline Willoughby - Crown Counsel "That is their right, they are defending their client and it is our right to defend what we defend for the state."
So, what considerations did the judge weigh, which led him to rule in the couple's favor?
Richard "Dickie" Bradley - Attorney for David Doehm "It has been the law in this country before I went to law school, which is a long, long time ago, that bail is a right, it is not a privilege. Nobody is doing you any favor to give you your freedom which is guaranteed in the constitution of Belize section 5, subsection 5. The second thing is the law is and I really want to emphasize this, that bail is not to be use to punish a person before a trial is held. Those are two very fundamental legal principles."
"It is all too easy to be denying persons their liberty which as many judges have observed creates major problems."
"At the magistrate court, I was the first to concede that a charge of cruelty to a child is a very serious charge, because all of us as adults and I am a parent, we must look after our children and even hold ourselves responsible for our neighbor's children. That is not a ground to lock up somebody in prison until 2019 when the trial may take place. That can't be fair. I understand the persons who are protesting. We feel for whatever the child may have suffered at the hands of these persons and if one of the Doehms or both of the Doehms are guilty of the allegation against them, I am the first to say let me rot in prison, but we cannot go the route of that Clint Eastwood movie "Hang Em High" by punishing people when there is only an allegation."
"In the meantime we, all of us need to hold to the sacred principle that when you are accused and you are not a flight risk and you are not going to interfere with witnesses, then you have a right to your freedom, because your freedom is guaranteed in the constitution of Belize."
But, there have been defendants who have been granted bail, and even with very restrictive conditions to their release, those defendants still managed to flee the country and criminal prosecution. The concern is that the Doehms will add to that list of fugitives who skipped bail and ran.
Richard "Dickie" Bradley "You can't punish if somebody didn't live up to their conditions. You can't look at all persons and bring up 'you remember that time they give a boy bail and he went and didn't come back' and then you will use that to punish me. That is not how the justice system work. Each case is on its own merits. If you do not turn up your fugitive from justice you have to hide the rest of your life until you are caught. In this particular case you will see that in fact the judge went extra steps to protect the system, in the sense that now the American Embassy, the mighty United States of America through their embassy is to make sure they don't go to America or Canada or anywhere through any facilitation from them. Where are they going to go? If they go to the States, they will bring them back. How will you reach the States if you don't have a passport? What sometimes happens I should say to you, because I do know, what does happens sometime an American citizen says nothing to his embassy, claims to have misplace or lost the passport and they give him a temporary travel document. The judge has covered up that loophole. No system is full proof, but remember the principle that the judge is there to uphold the liberty of a person."
While exiting from the hearings, media workers tried to put questions to the two accused.
Reporter "And do you missed her (Faye)?"
Anke Doehm "Yes."
So, as we told you, the Justice Hanomansingh granted them bail of $10,000 each. He gave them a long list of conditions by which they must abide, or else bail will be revoked.
Most importantly, they are not allowed to leave the country until the criminal case against them is concluded.
There is also the specific conditions that they must hand over their travel documents to the US Embassy to be retained until the charge of cruelty to a child is concluded.
Also, they must report to the Queen Street Police Station every Monday, and they must attend every adjournment of the case against them.
While the judge was trying to find out which police station they must report to, the attorneys told the court that it is best that they report to the Queen Street Police Station, because the couple has moved out of San Pedro Town.
We are told that only Anke Doehm managed to meet bail through a bail bondsman this evening, and it is expected that her husband, David, will do so on Monday.
David and Anke Doehm were granted Supreme Court Bail of $10,000 each for the charges of Cruelty to a Child in the death case of Faye Lin Cannon. Angry protesters from San Pedro chanted "Justice for Faye" while the court was in session in Belize City. Needless to say, everyone was disappointed at the outcome of the court hearings as the Doehms walk free for the time being.
The opinions and views expressed on this board are the subjective opinions of Ambergris Caye Message Board members and not of the Ambergris Caye Message Board its affiliates, or its employees.
AmbergrisCaye.com 
Last night, we told you how a group of San Pedro residents intended to stage a protest in front of the Supreme Court. They were there to demand that Americans David and Anke Doehm to remain in jail while the await a criminal trial related to the death of their 13 year-old adopted daughter Faye Lin Cannon.
Michelle Huber - San Pedro Resident
"I am tired of seeing my youths murdered on the streets of Belize City. I am tired of seeing mothers cry. I am tired of seeing single parents with no assistance. We are asking for justice. We will not be quite. I will not be quite. We are tired. All we are asking for is Justice for Faye, justice for Pastor Lucas and there are many more, there are many more murders that has not been solve and we want justice."
"It hurts to see people murdered. It hurts that no one comes and stands for the right thing. But when there are concerts there are people by the thousands. We need to focus on this entire nation and put a stop to this. Enough is enough. When will enough be enough Belize?"
"There is dead child on our hands, there is blood on our hands. As a Belizean citizen and as an educator for over 20 years I have to say we need to stand up. We cannot let these things happen in our country, especially to children and let it go by."
"I don't live in San Pedro, I am from Ladyville, but when I heard the news about what happened to baby Faye, it touches me deep, because I have a little girl that is 15 years old. If it was me and if I had a man and they (the police) came to my house to find my 13 year old daughter dead, we definitely would have gotten charge for murder the same day. We would have been spending our time in jail until our case comes up to prove that it's not us who kill the person. At the end of the day we don't want them to get bail."
"It is the position our office that they have become a flight risks. One of the issues is you have to be able to take care of yourself in Belize. Their business is down. One of the petitioners have been release of his employment. They really have no other means here. They have no property. The issue of the children are in human services. There is matters before other courts that custody is being sought by the adopted father. It is our view in our office that there is really no reason for them to stay here. This charge will yield them prison time of up to 10 years. But at the end of the day, it is in the discretion of the judge to determine whether or not he would give bail."
"It has been the law in this country before I went to law school, which is a long, long time ago, that bail is a right, it is not a privilege. Nobody is doing you any favor to give you your freedom which is guaranteed in the constitution of Belize section 5, subsection 5. The second thing is the law is and I really want to emphasize this, that bail is not to be use to punish a person before a trial is held. Those are two very fundamental legal principles."
Anke Doehm
