(Bahamas) Certain statutory provisions relating to drug offences infringed the Constitution of The Bahamas. A question then arose on the severability of one of the offending statutory provisions, section 22(8) of the Dangerous Drugs Act. This subsection related both to convictions on information and to summary convictions. The subsection was unconstitutional in its application to summary convictions but not in its application to convictions on information. In holding that section 22(8) was void only in so far as it related to summary convictions the Board applied the Hutchinson ‘substantial severability’ test. The section sought improperly to deprive defendants of their right to a jury trial.
Court: PCDate: 01-Jan-1994
References: [1994] 1 AC 283, [1994] 4 All ER 476, [1994] CLY 496
Cases Cited:
- Director of Public Prosecutions -v- Hutchinson; Director of Public Prosecutions -v- Smith, HL, Cited, ([1990] 2 AC 783, Times 13-Jul-90, Bailii, [1988] UKHL 11)
Cited By:
