Before the decision, murder convicts were automatically condemned to death regardless if there were any extenuating circumstances in the crime.

The killers, whose convictions were upheld on appeal, had to be resentenced after the Privy Council ruling invalidated their death sentences.

In the absence of any statutory guidelines, sentencing judges considered the circumstances of the offence and the progress the offender had made while in custody in determining an appropriate sentence.

 (Nassau Guardian)