On May 28, 2021, Jasmine Hartin, a Belize-based Canadian hotelier and mother of two, accidentally fatally shot Belizean police superintendent Henry Jemmott with his own pistol while socialising with him in San Pedro Town. She pled guilty to manslaughter in April 2023, before being fined and ordered to undertake community service.
Jasmine Hartin
Hartin was born in 1988 in
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located on the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River (south end of the Rideau Canal). The city is midway between Toro ...
to mother Candice Castiglione. Her older sister, Jacinta Hartin, was born in .
Hartin was in a
common-law marriage
Common-law marriage, also known as non-ceremonial marriage, marriage, informal marriage, or marriage by habit and repute, is a legal framework where a couple may be considered married without having formally registered their relation as a civil ...
with hotelier Andrew Ashcroft, the son of former
British Conservative Party
The Conservative Party, officially the Conservative and Unionist Party and also known colloquially as the Tories, is one of the two main political parties in the United Kingdom, along with the Labour Party. It is the current governing party, ...
deputy chair
Michael Ashcroft
Michael Anthony Ashcroft, Baron Ashcroft, (born 4 March 1946) is a British-Belizean businessman, pollster and politician. He is a former deputy chairman of the Conservative Party. Ashcroft founded Michael A. Ashcroft Associates in 1972 and is ...
. She worked in real estate before being employed by her husband's hotel.
After the shooting, the couple separated. Andrew took custody of the couple's two children in 2022, prompting a custody battle between them.
Shooting
On May 28, 2021, Hartin accidentally shot Belizean police superintendent Henry Jemmott. The shooting occurred on a pier in San Pedro Town. After fatally shooting Jemmott with his own pistol, Hartin was arrested on May 31 and charged with manslaughter. Initially denied bail and held in
Belize Central Prison
Belize Central Prison is the sole correctional facility in the country of Belize, located in Hattieville. The Kolbe Foundation, a non-profit, non-governmental organization, has managed the prison since 2002.
Aftermath
Hartin discussed the shooting on the television program ''48-hours'' stating that she went for a late night walk and drink of whisky with Jemmott, who was a long time friend, before accidentally shooting him, while he was showing her his Glock 17 pistol. Hartin also was interviewed by ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' and by Piers Morgan on TalkTV denying any romantic connection to Jemmott and explaining that he was giving her a gun lesson. In June 2022, Hartin made a plea to Canadian Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau
Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since 2 ...
for assistance to leave Belize. The family of the Henry Jemmott accused Hartin of operating an "international PR campaign" in the aftermath of his homicide.
On April 26, 2023, Hartin pled guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced by judge Ricardo Sandcroft to 300 hours of community service and a fine. The court confiscated Hartin's passport. After Hartin paid the fine, officials refused to return Hartin's passport, but she was able to obtain temporary travel documents from the Canadian embassy.
On June 6, 2023, Hartin was detained overnight at the
Belize–Mexico border
The Belize–Mexico border is an international border between Belize and Mexico. It is long and almost exclusively follows the course of the Hondo River. It separates Belize from the Mexican states of Quintana Roo and Campeche.
The modern bou ...
amid allegations that she was trying to leave Belize without paying her fine. The next day, she was released after police commissioner Chester Williams confirmed she had broken no laws and met her obligations to pay the fine.