Foster & Anor v. The Queen (Barbados)

Foster & Anor v. The Queen (Barbados) [2007] UKPC 20 (23 January 2007)

Privy Council Appeal Nos. 60 and 61 of 2006

(1) Trevor Anderson Foster

(2) Cedric Leon Williams Appellants

v.

The Queen Respondent

FROM

THE COURT OF APPEAL OF

BARBADOS

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REASONS FOR DECISION OF THE LORDS OF THE

JUDICIAL COMMITTEE OF THE PRIVY COUNCIL, OF THE

23rd January 2007, Delivered the 29th March 2007

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Present at the hearing:-

Lord Hoffmann

Lord Hope of Craighead

Lord Scott of Foscote

Lord Carswell

Sir Paul Kennedy

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[Delivered by Lord Carswell]

The felony murder rule has been abrogated in many common law jurisdictions (it was abolished in England and Wales by the Homicide Act 1957), but it still remains the law in some. Until 1 September 1994 it was part of the law of Barbados and it was so part when the appellants were tried and convicted.

The appellant Trevor Anderson Foster was convicted of the murder of Ruby Grecia on 25 April 1989 after a trial before Chase J and a jury and the judge passed the then mandatory sentence of death. He appealed against conviction to the Court of Appeal of Barbados, which on 18 October 1994 dismissed his appeal. In or about the year 2004 the sentence was commuted to one of imprisonment for life.

The appellant Cedric Leon Williams was convicted on 26 May 1993 of the murder of Cynthia Martin after a trial before Belgrave J and a jury and sentenced to death. His appeal against conviction was dismissed by the Court of Appeal on 5 April 1994. His sentence was also commuted to life imprisonment in or about 2004.

On 23 July 1996 both appellants were granted special leave to appeal as poor persons, but for reasons which remain obscure neither appeal was brought on until the solicitors and counsel now acting for each appellant received the papers, realised the situation and proceeded to have the records completed and the appeals listed for hearing. The delay is highly regrettable, but in no respect the fault of the appellants' present solicitors and counsel, and their Lordships thought it right to proceed with the hearing of the appeals and deal with their substance. At the conclusion of the argument the Board announced that they would humbly advise Her Majesty that both appeals should be dismissed, with their reasons to be given later. This judgment now contains the reasons of the Board.

Trevor Anderson Foster's appeal

The deceased woman Ruby Grecia, otherwise Kellman, the grandmother of the appellant Foster, lived in a house at Cambridge, St Joseph, which was also occupied by the appellant's father Denzil Grecia, his uncle Winston Grecia and the appellant himself. The house, which…

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