/B>(1) A person shall not be deprived of his personal liberty save as
may be authorized by law in any of the following cases, that is to say-
a) in consequence of his unfitness to plead to a criminal charge;
b) in execution of the sentence or order of a court, whether established for
Saint Christopher and Nevis or some other country, in respect of a criminal
offence of which he has been convicted;
c) in execution of the order of the High Court or the Court of Appeal
punishing him for contempt of that court or of another court or tribunal;
d) in execution of the order of a court made to secure the fulfillment of any
obligation imposed on him by law;
e) for the purpose of bringing him before a court in execution of the order
of a court;
f) upon reasonable suspicion of his having committed, or being about to
commit, a criminal offence under any law;
g) under the order of a court or with the consent of his parent or guardian,
for his education or welfare during any period ending not later than the date
when he attains the age of eighteen years;
h) for the purpose of preventing the spread of an infectious of contagious
disease;
i) in the case of a person who is, or is reasonably suspected to be, of
unsound mind, addicted to drugs or alcohol, or a vagrant, for the purpose of his
case or treatment or the protection of the community;
j) for the purpose of preventing the unlawful entry of that person into Saint
Christopher and Nevis or for the purpose of effecting the expulsion, extradition
or other lawful removal of that person from Saint Christopher and Nevis or for
the purpose of restricting that person while he is being conveyed through Saint
Christopher and Nevis in the course of his extradition or removal as a convicted
prisoner from one country to another; or
k) to such extent as may be necessary in the execution of a lawful order
requiring that person to remain within a specified area within Saint Christopher
and Nevis, or prohibiting him from being within such an area, or to such extent
as may be reasonably justifiable for the taking of proceedings against that
person with a view to the making of any such order or relating to such an order
after it has been made, or to such extent as may be reasonably justifiable for
restraining that person during any visit that he is permitted to make to any
part of Saint Christopher and Nevis in which, in consequence of any such order,
his presence would otherwise be unlawful.
(2) Any person who is arrested or detained shall with reasonable promptitude
and in any case not later than forty-eight hours after such arrest or detention
be informed in a language that he understands of the reasons for his arrest or
detention and be afforded reasonable facilities for private communication and
consultation with a legal practitioner of his own choice and, in the case of a
person under the age of eighteen years, with his parents or guardian.
(3) Any person who is arrested or detained-
a) for the purpose of bringing him before a court in execution of the order
of a court; or
b) upon reasonable suspicion of his having committed, or being about to
commit, a criminal offence under any law and who is not released, shall be brought before a court without undue delay
and in any case not later than seventy-two hours after his arrest or detention.
(4) Where any person is brought before a court in execution of the order of a
court in any proceedings or upon suspicion of his having committed or being
about to commit a criminal offence, he shall not be thereafter further held in
custody in connection with those proceedings or that offence save upon the order
of a court.
(5) If any person arrested or detained as mentioned in subsection (3)(b) is
not tried within a reasonable time, then, without prejudice to any further
proceedings that may be brought against him, he shall be released either
unconditionally or upon reasonable conditions, including in particular such
conditions as are reasonably necessary to ensure that he appears at a later date
for trial or for proceedings preliminary to trial, and such conditions may
include bail so long as it is not excessive.
(6) Any person who is unlawfully arrested or detained by any other person
shall be entitled to compensation thereof from that other person or from any
other person or authority on whose behalf that other person was acting:
Provided that a judge, a magistrate or a justice of the peace or an officer
of a court of a police officer acting in pursuance of the order of a judge, a
magistrate or a justice of the peace shall not be under any personal liability
to pay compensation under this subsection in consequence of any act performed by
him in good faith in the discharge of the functions of his office and any
liability to pay any such compensation in consequence of any such act shall be a
liability of the Crown.
(7) For the purposes of subsection (1)(b) a person charged before a court
with a criminal offence in respect of whom a special verdict has been returned
that he was guilty of the act or omission or that he is not guilty by reason of
insanity shall be regarded as a person who has been convicted of a criminal
offence and the detention of that person in consequence of such a verdict shall
be regarded as detention in execution of the order of a court.