The High Court has ruled that the State unlawfully detained a prisoner for nearly seven weeks after magistrates continued a pandemic-era practice of signing remand warrants without physically seeing him.

Wayne Worrell, an inmate at His Majesty’s Prison, was arrested on 1 August 2024 and charged the next day with what court documents described as a “serious offence”. He was remanded into custody on 7 August.

However, between 14 August and 8 October, remand warrants were signed in his absence and he was not brought before a magistrate in person.

Under Section 239 of the Magistrates Code of Procedure Act, a detainee must be physically produced before a magistrate every eight days. The provision allows the court to consider bail and inquire into a prisoner’s welfare.

In a judgment delivered on 23 February 2026, the court found that the continued use of the Covid-19 emergency practice breached both the Act and constitutional safeguards.

The judge said the unlawful period ran from 17 October to 3 December 2024, when Mr Worrell was finally brought before a magistrate following a court order.

The State was ordered to pay EC$10,000 in damages, with the court saying the award reflected the seriousness of the systemic failure.

The judge noted that before the pandemic, magistrates routinely conducted remand hearings in person at the prison, but that practice was not restored after the state of emergency ended.

Parliament amended the law in March last year to allow virtual remand hearings, a change the court said may help prevent a recurrence.