Privy Council Denies Die Stubbs Permission to Appeal

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The Privy Council, the country’s final Appeal Court, has shot down convicted cop killer Stephen “Die’ Stubbs’ last bid for freedom.

Stubbs had sought permission to appeal a 35-year sentence handed to him by the Court of Appeal in 2021 for the 1999 shooting death of DC Jimmy Ambrose.

The sentence takes effect from his conviction on July 25, 2013.

But the Privy Council refused to hear the matter after finding that there was no risk that a serious miscarriage of justice had occurred.

Stubbs has been tried three times for the murder that took place outside the Club Rock Night Club on West Bay Street.

He was convicted after his first trial in 2002 and sentenced to death. However, the conviction and sentence were overturned on appeal in 2004.

Stubbs was tried again in 2007, but a mistrial was declared following claims of jury tampering.

He was convicted following a third trial in July 2013. The trial judge rejected a call for the death penalty and sentenced Stubbs to life imprisonment.

In July 2016, the Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal. The decision was later overturned by the Privy Council on the basis that one of the judges on the panel should’ve recused himself due to his involvement in the 2007 retrial.

Once again in 2019, the Court of Appeal dismissed Stubbs’ appeal against conviction, but replaced his life sentence with a fixed term of 45 years, reduced to 35 years for time spent on remand.

The following year, the Privy Council upheld Stubbs conviction but said Stubbs was entitled to a reduced sentence for breaches of his constitutional rights.

As a result, the Court of Appeal reduced Stubbs’ sentence to 35 years.