In a landmark ruling delivered on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has overturned a three-month custodial sentence handed down to a Barbadian man convicted of cannabis trafficking, correcting what senior judges identified as multiple critical errors in lower court applications of Barbados’ modern sentencing legislation.
The case centers on Danny Lamar Husbands, who pled guilty to trafficking 90 grams of cannabis. Initially, the Magistrate’s Court sentenced Husbands to three months in prison, basing the ruling heavily on his prior criminal convictions and concluding that his offending behavior had escalated over time. The Barbados Court of Appeal later upheld this original custodial sentence, leaving Husbands to appeal to the region’s highest court for redress.
In its official press release outlining the judgment, the CCJ confirmed it has granted Husbands’ appeal, setting aside both the lower appellate court’s ruling and the original prison term. In place of custody, the court ordered Husbands to enter a six-month good behavior bond. Should he fail to meet the terms of this bond, he will be required to pay a fine of 675 Barbadian dollars within a 14-day window.
The core of the CCJ’s ruling rests on its finding that both lower courts failed to adhere to the requirements of Barbados’ Penal System Reform Act, a landmark piece of legislation designed to expand the use of non-custodial sentencing and cut down on unnecessary incarceration across the country. The CCJ explained that the act sets a strict high threshold that must be met before courts can issue a custodial sentence, adding that Barbadian courts have routinely opted for non-custodial penalties in cannabis trafficking cases involving quantities similar to the 90 grams at issue in Husbands’ case.
Senior judges also emphasized that the lower courts incorrectly assigned excessive weight to Husbands’ prior criminal record. Under the explicit text of the Penal System Reform Act, an offender cannot be ordered to serve prison time solely on the basis of previous convictions, a rule that both lower courts failed to follow in this proceeding. Compounding this error, the CCJ found the Barbados Court of Appeal violated statutory requirements by upholding the custodial sentence without first ordering and reviewing a mandatory pre-sentence report.
The appeal was heard by a five-justice panel consisting of Justices Rajnauth-Lee, Jamadar, Ononaiwu, Eboe-Osuji and Bulkan. Husbands was represented by Andrew O. G. Pilgrim, SC, and Martie R. M. Garnes, while Krystal C. Delaney and Kevin Forde represented the respondent. Anika Jackson, SC, and Rico Yearwood appeared as amicus curiae on behalf of Barbados’ Attorney General. The full text of the court’s judgment is currently available for public viewing on the CCJ’s official website.
In the press release, the CCJ underscored that the ruling serves to reinforce the core purpose of the Penal System Reform Act, ensuring that the power to order imprisonment is only exercised in cases where it is clearly legally justified under the legislation.