MILLICENT Forbes — the woman who grabbed national attention for her steadfast resolve in her decade-long fight for justice over the police killing of her daughter Janice Allen — is dead.

Forbes, 53, died at the University Hospital of the West Indies Sunday afternoon from complications brought on by a stomach infection, daughter Ann-Marie Allen told the Observer yesterday.

Allen said that her mother had been ailing for some time and was taken to hospital on Thursday after experiencing difficulty breathing.

Forbes was yesterday described as “a true Jamaican hero, a picture of perseverance, courage, faith and integrity” by Jamaicans For Justice (JFJ), the lobby group which helped championed her case.

“It is with great shock and sadness that we learn of the death of Millicent Forbes,” JFJ said in a news release. “We at JFJ extend our heartfelt condolences, prayers, thoughts and sympathies to her children… and the family and friends that she has left behind.”

Forbes’ long road for justice, a process which is currently ongoing, began with the death of Janice Allen, her 13-year-old daughter who was shot dead at her gate in Trench Town, Kingston on April 18, 2000. The police reported that she was killed during a shoot-out with gunmen.

A police constable, Rohan Allen (no relation), was charged with murder for the teen’s death, but was freed in March 2004 after then Chief Justice Lensley Wolfe directed a jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty in the trial that was transferred from Kingston to the Portland Circuit Court.

Backed by the JFJ, Forbes took the case to the London-based Privy Council, which serves as Jamaica’s final court of appeal, after the local courts rejected her application for the verdict to be set aside.

The Privy Council, however, upheld the decision of the local courts, but recommended that Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn consider if the policeman should be retried, a decision legal minds say will be cited in legal circles for years to come.

Following a lengthy review of the evidence in the case, Llewellyn decided last year May not to re-indict the cop, citing a lack of evidence on which a conviction could be secured.

However, the resilient Forbes pressed on and in July 2009 secured Judicial Review of Llewellyn’s decision.

Forbes in subsequent interviews said she would not give up her fight until the cop responsible for her daughter’s death was brought to justice.

But this drive suffered a setback earlier this year following a successful application by Llewellyn to strike out the decision to grant Forbes Judicial Review.

Never the quitter, Forbes appealed the decision. A judgement is now pending in the Court of Appeal.

The State had recently decided to compensate Janice Allen’s estate over the death.

Yesterday, JFJ hailed Forbes’ resolve in the face of adversity and seeming insurmountable odds.

“She withstood threats, harassment, attempted bribery and repeated disappointments with unfavourable court decisions but she refused to give up,” JFJ said.

“Miss Milli always said that she would go the distance to see justice done for her daughter and was resolute in her fight. Her resolve and determination are her legacies to us and she has shown us that successes do not result from a single effort but rather through constancy and courage,” JFJ said.

Ann-Marie Allen yesterday remembered her mother as a kind person who had many friends. She said also that the family would continue their mother’s fight for justice for their slain sibling.

Apart from Ann-Marie Allen, Forbes is survived by daughters Alica Coubrie, Sheronan Campbell, Latoya Grant and Georgia Brooks and son André Lindo.