"I am hoping to get work as a Graphic Artist".

These were the words issued by Major Lester"Goat" Redhead to reporters within minutes of being freed Wednesday afternoon from the Richmond Hill prison where he had been serving a life sentence for the role he played in the 1983 bloody events at Fort Rupert.

Redhead said that he had used the past 24 years training on the computer at the prison in the area of graphic designs. The ex-military officer was among three persons released from custody following a ruling by high court judge, Justice Francis Belle at the makeshift court at the Grenada Trade Centre at Grand Anse, St. George's.

Two other soldiers - Major Christopher Stroude and Cecil Prime - walked out from the prison compound at approximately 4.12 p.m accompanied by their team of local, regional and international lawyers. Reporters had to wait outside the prison compound for nearly five hours as the release of the three inmates were being held up by prison authorities who were allegedly waiting on instructions from the Office of the Attorney General.

A handful of their supporters were gathered outside the prison compound to greet the released revolutionary soldiers. Earlier in the day, Justice Belle delivered his re-sentencing ruling on the remaining thirteen former revolutionary figures who were convicted in 1986 for the murder of Prime Minister Maurice Bishop and close colleagues at the height of a power struggle within the then ruling New Jewel Movement (NJM).

The judge handed down 30 year prison sentences on Redhead, Prime and Stroude and because of the time already spent in incarceration they were ordered to be released immediately from prison.

The coup plotters including ex-deputy Prime Minister Bernard Coard, General Hudson Austin, former Mobilisation Minister, Selwyn Strachan, and ex-envoy to Cuba, Major Leon"Bogo" Cornwall were each sentenced to 40 years in prison with hard labour. Similar sentences were handed down on Lieutenant-Colonels Liam James, Ewart"Headache" Layne, Dave Bartholomew, Kamau Mc Barnette, trade unionist John Ventour, and soldier Callistus "Iman Abdullah" Bernard.

These latter prisoners are due to be released in 2010 given the time already spent at the prison. In delivering lesser sentences on the three soldiers, Justice Belle said that he took into consideration the fact that they had played a lesser role in the execution of Bishop and the others.

He stated that the mandatory life sentences that were given to them by the Mercy Committee after the original death sentence was reduced was definitely unlawful and had violated their constitutional rights. According to Justice Belle, one of the reasons why he decided to give them a fixed prison sentence the fact that they had come close to death when the State had prepared them for hanging in the late 1980's.

He also took the position that the events of October 19, 1983 resulted from civil strife and was not pre-meditated as argued by the prosecution."I don't agree that there was a long term plan (to kill Bishop). I agree that it was as a result of civil strife", the judge said.

Justice Belle also told the court that he agreed with the submission of the defense team of lawyers that the prisoners are no longer threats to the society given the passage of time. He expressed regrets that the State had failed in its duty to do a psychological assessment of the prisoners while in custody in order to grant them an earlier release.

Justice Belle also took into consideration the previous good character of the prisoners, as well as their progress and good behaviour while in prison. In the cases of Ventour, the judge ordered that the soon-to-be-set up Prison Review Board look at his medical condition within a 6-month period. Ventour is diabetic and said to be suffering from prostrate cancer.

The judge also commented on the medical condition of Mc Barnette who is ailing from cancer and ordered that his condition be reassessed in the next 12 months. Justice Belle made a plea for the State to consider the case of General Austin in light of the tremendous role he played in rehabilitating the prison after the widespread destruction of Hurricane Ivan in 2004.

Within minutes of delivering his ruling, the judge flew out of Grenada as a security measure.