The Tribune

By LAMECH JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Reporter\

ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

FORMER teacher Andre Birbal was considered a flight risk and denied bail by a senior judge shortly after the judge granted him a retrial date for his case in which he is accused of having unnatural sex with two juvenile boys.

Senior Justice Jon Isaacs told Birbal that he could challenge his decision to deny bail with Justice Vera Watkins when he appears before her on January 25, 2013 for a status hearing.

His retrial date was fixed for October 7, 2013 before the issue of bail arose when it was noted that Birbal had been extradited from the USA to the Bahamas.

Justice Isaacs had asked Birbal if he had been arrested in the U.S. Birbal answered that he was “in custody.”

Birbal, before stating that he was “brought” to the Bahamas and not extradited, said that he was born in Trinidad, but had permanent residence in the Bahamas.

The judge said while he was eligible for bail, “I am not minded to grant you bail.”

“Inasmuch as I consider you a flight risk, you can challenge my decision not to grant you bail before Madame Justice Watkins when you appear before her for mention on January 25, 2013.”

Birbal’s 2011 Supreme Court conviction of having unnatural sex with two juveniles was quashed yesterday and remitted to the court in Nassau for retrial.

Court of Appeal judges ruled that the jury in Birbal’s case had not been properly directed by the judge on the possibility of corroboration and collusion between the two complainants in the case.

Justices Stanley John, Christopher Blackman and President Anita Allen also noted that the jury was not fully directed on the issue of Birbal’s character and having no previous arrests or convictions in his 23 years as a teacher, 18 of them in Grand Bahama.

Justice John, who delivered the court’s ruling on the appeal, noted that these were the two pressing concerns for the court and the primary reasons among others that it concluded that the verdict handed down to Birbal was unsafe.

It was remitted to the Supreme Court in Nassau for retrial at the earliest convenience.

Birbal, who defended himself, is a former arts and computer design instructor . He was convicted in January 2011 of having sex with two of his male students in Eight Mile Rock.

He was sentenced to 35 years in prison by Justice Hartman Longley.

Since then, Birbal has appeared before the appellate court on numerous occasions, the last being on December 13, when Justice John handed down the court’s ruling.

In yesterday’s proceedings, before being given a trial date, Birbal raised objections to the indictment sheet, claiming that some of the charges were ambiguous allowing the prosecution to “window-shop” with the evidence.

He further argued that the charges against him should be separated into two cases and not joined as one.

However, Director of Public Prosecutions Vinette Graham-Allen countered that these points raised in the appeal court were not new and the higher court had not sent the matter back for retrial on those issues.

Justice Isaacs told Birbal that the Court of Appeal’s order was for a retrial to occur, and not two separate trials.

Birbal said that a joint trial for separate incidences was unfair to him.

The judge replied that it the Court of Appeal made a ruling he would follow it, although he did note that if Birbal felt strongly that he was being treated unfairly, he could take the matter higher than the Appeal Court.

Birbal was given a trial date for October next year. The bail issue was brought up by the accused.

However, upon discovering that Birbal had been arrested in the US and brought to the Bahamas to stand trial, Senior Justice Isaacs denied bail, considering Birbal a flight risk.

Birbal was remanded to prison until completion of his trial. However as he was told by Senior Justice Isaacs he can apply for bail before Justice Watkins.