Ricardo Farrington (Appellant) v The King (Respondent) (Bahamas)
Case ID: JCPC 2021/0117
Jurisdiction: Court of Appeal of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas
Case summary
Issue
Should the Appellant be re-sentenced for murder in light of the Privy Council's decision in Bowe and another v The Queen [2006] UKPC 10?
Facts
The Appellant was convicted of murder in November 1992, which at the time was understood as carrying a mandatory death sentence. In 1996, however, the Appellant's sentence was commuted by the Privy Council to one of life imprisonment on the ground that to carry out the death penalty after a period of delay would amount to inhuman punishment.
In 2006, the Privy Council in the case of Bowe and another v The Queen ("Bowe") considered that section 312 of the Bahamian Penal Code should be construed as imposing a discretionary and not a mandatory sentence of death.
Following Bowe, the Appellant has attempted unsuccessfully to apply to be re-sentenced so as to obtain a determinate tariff under his life imprisonment sentence. The Bahamian courts have ruled that they are unable to do so, however, because the sentence of life imprisonment was imposed by the Privy Council.
The Appellant now appeals to the Privy Council.
Parties
Appellant
Ricardo Farrington
Respondent
The King
Appeal
Justices
Lord Hodge, Lord Hamblen, Lord Burrows, Lord Stephens, Dame Janice Pereira
Hearing start date
10 December 2024
Hearing finish date
10 December 2024