Monrovia City Court Judge Ben Barco Rejects Viral Video as Evidence in Kindness Wilson Assault Trial

Monrovia, Liberia: Judge Ben Barco of the Monrovia City Court has rejected a viral video in which Madam Kindness Wilson is seen assaulting her fellow student on the Stella Maris University campus.

Judge Barco denied the admissibility of the video into evidence in the trial of Wilson.

The judge's reliance is on the lack of authentication and credibility of the video. This decision means that the video that went viral on social media will not be considered as evidence in the case.

Owing to the latest development, the prosecution will rely primarily on an eyewitness account.

Judge Barco’s decision comes on the heels of a motion of objection raised last Tuesday, April 8, 2025, by Defense Counsel Attorney Jeremiah Samuel Dugbo I.

The defense counsel had challenged the introduction of the video footage presented by prosecution lawyer Cllr. Moriah Yeakula.

The defense lawyer argued that the video was self-serving and surreptitiously acquired.

Acknowledging that video testimony is generally allowed in trial, Judge Barco highlighted that such evidence must first meet the legal standard of credibility, a burden the Monrovia City Court judge maintained the prosecution had woefully failed to fulfill.

Kindness Wilson, the first runner-up in the Miss Liberia beauty pageant, was granted bail after her court appearance on Wednesday, April 2, 2025, regarding an assault charge involving a fellow student from Stella Maris University, Jumel Cassell.

Wilson was released after presenting a valid criminal appearance bond to the Monrovia City Court.

The incident occurred at Stella Maris University and has drawn widespread attention. Wilson has faced significant public backlash for her actions, which have raised questions about her behavior.

In response, the Miss International Liberia Organization, which had previously crowned Wilson as Miss International Liberia, quickly acted to revoke her title, citing a zero-tolerance policy for violence.

The organization emphasized that Wilson’s conduct was contrary to the values it seeks to promote and announced that the search for the next Miss International Liberia would proceed as planned.