Case details

The Queen (Appellant) v Evans (Respondent) (Bahamas)

Case ID: JCPC 2020/0005

Jurisdiction: The Court of Appeal of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas

Case summary

Issue(s)
  1. Whether the convictions of Stubbs and Davis for murder and attempted murder were rendered unsafe by (i) the trial Judge’s handling of evidence at trial or (ii) the trial Judge’s directions to the jury
  2. Whether the Court of Appeal erred in law and adopted the wrong approach when reducing the sentences of Stubbs and Davis
  3. Whether the Court of Appeal erred in law or adopted the wrong approach in quashing Evans’ conviction, and if so, should the Board restore Evans' conviction
  4. If the Board does not restore Evans’ conviction, should it nonetheless order him to be re-tried
Facts

In July 2013 Stephen Stubbs, Andrew Davis and Clinton Evans were convicted of the murder of Jimmy Ambrose and the attempted murder of Marcian Scott. Evans was convicted on two further counts alleging firearm offences. They were each sentenced to life imprisonment for murder and ten years’ imprisonment for attempted murder. Evans was also sentenced to three years’ imprisonment on each firearms count. All sentences were to run concurrently.

In July 2016 the Court of Appeal dismissed each of their appeals against conviction and sentence. That decision was later overturned by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, on the basis that one of the members of the Court of Appeal Panel ought to have recused himself due to his involvement in an earlier aborted retrial of the matter: Stubbs, Davis and Evans v The Queen (Bahamas) [2018] UKPC 30. Their appeals were accordingly remitted to the Court of Appeal for a rehearing.

Following a rehearing before a differently constituted Court of Appeal, the appeals against conviction brought by Stubbs and Davis were dismissed but the appeals against sentence were allowed. Stubbs and Davis were sentenced to 45 years’ imprisonment each. In light of time served, the Court of Appeal held that Mr Stubbs had to serve 35 years from the date of the Court of Appeal judgment, and Mr Davis had to serve 34 years from the date of its judgment.

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal against conviction brought by Evans and did not order a retrial.

Stubbs and Davis now appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council against the dismissal of their appeals against conviction and against the reduced sentences imposed. The Crown appeals against the Court of Appeal’s decision to overturn Evans’s conviction and to not order his retrial.

Parties

Appellant(s)

The Queen

Respondent(s)

Clinton Evans

Appeal

Justices

Lord Kerr, Lord Lloyd-Jones, Lord Kitchin, Lord Hamblen, Lord Burrows

Hearing start date

02 Jun 2020

Hearing finish date

07 Jun 2020

Judgment details