Killer loses appeal, partner gets reprieve

A CONVICTED killer lost his appeal in the Privy Council on Wednesday, while his partner will know if the local Court of Appeal will order a retrial, or set him free. Mark Teeluck lost his appeal, but the appeal of co-accused Jason Ellis John was allowed and will be remitted to the Court of Appeal to determine the issue of whether a new trial should be ordered. Teeluck and John were sentenced to death by Justice Anthony Lucky in the San Fernando High Court on July 14, 2000, for the 1997 murder of Narvin Nandlal. They appealed and the Court of Appeal comprising Justices Roger Hamel-Smith, Jean Permanand and Lionel Jones, dismissed the appeals on March 26, 2002.

The appellants then turned to the Privy Council comprising Lords Hoffmann, Hope, Hutton, Walker and Carswell. Three grounds of appeal were argument, and the main one was the direction on the good character of Teeluck and John. Counsel for both men felt the judge should have given a good character direction. They submitted that the omission to bring out their character and to ensure that a proper direction was given by the judge was incompetence on the part of counsel of such a degree that the verdicts should not stand.

Lord Carswell, who delivered the judgment, said the case was clear against Teeluck who said he was never arrested before. But it was discovered he had pleaded guilty to a drug offence. The Privy Council found that Teeluck had put his character in issue by this statement. The case present on behalf of John was different. He had never been arrested or charged, so he was entitled to the benefit of the good character direction.