Prison Commissioner Edward Lamb has defended a decision to allow a convicted murderer out of jail for a family visit in the Botanical Gardens.

Stanford Archibald is serving a life sentence for the 1985 killing of teenager Aaron Easton described by a prosecutor as one of the most brutal in Bermuda's history. But this week he was allowed out of his jail cell to meet with his wife and two young daughters in the public gardens, escorted by a guard.

Explaining how the unusual visit came to pass, Lt. Col. Lamb told The Royal Gazette: "This visit took place several days ago at the Botanical Gardens, a site that was deemed to be safe and had a minimal amount of people around during the day.

"When circumstances allow, and if the inmate is deserving and meets stringent criteria, home / outside visits are permitted for inmates from Westgate. This happens from time to time and is always based on the individual's merit. They have always gone without incident, as did this one. Archibald was escorted at all times by a well-trained officer."

Archibald, now 47, was charged with murder in 2001 after he and his wife Julie returned to Bermuda for a vacation with their two children. They had been living in Scotland, where his family still resides.

Before he left the Island in 1996 he gave blood for DNA testing in relation to the murder of Mr. Easton, 18, who was found dead in pool of blood in Laffan Street, Pembroke, in May 1985. He'd been stabbed 49 times and hit with a concrete block.

Pieces of concrete block found at the murder scene were tested for traces of DNA evidence in 1997 and 2001, and this led to Archibald being charged with the crime. His defence lawyer Mark Pettingill argued during the trial that the specimens were mixed up and blood found at the scene was not his.

However, Archibald was convicted by a jury and jailed for life in July 2003 in what is believed to be the first such case in Bermuda to be cracked by DNA evidence. He lost a subsequent appeal and has several more years to serve before he can apply for parole.

Before the Easton case, he had previously served jail time for his role in an armed robbery at Hayward's Grocery in Warwick in 1986 where a man was shot dead by one of his accomplices.

Lt. Col. Lamb said last night: "Archibald has been a model inmate and requested several weeks ago to have a home visit with his wife and two young daughters, who were visiting from Scotland for the first time in several years, or a supervised visit outside of Westgate. This would have been the first time in several years that these girls will have seen their father.

"After discussions with senior staff, it was agreed to allow him a visit outside Westgate, given his being compliant and cooperative for the entire period of his incarceration. He was also deemed to be low-risk.

"Also, this visit outside the confines of a prison setting was deemed to be very helpful in reconciling with his family; a key plank in our mission to rehabilitate offenders. In fact, we made it clear to Archibald that this permission was less to do with him and more to do with his children. Archibald returned to Westgate with no threat to safety or security.

"All factors are stringently considered with requests for outside / home visits. The paramount considerations are security; inmate's conduct; family circumstances and flight risk. Archibald qualified in all these areas."

Meanwhile Mr. Pettingill, who still represents Archibald and visited him recently, said he was not surprised by news of the visit.

He explained: "Stanford is an individual who falls into the 'trustee' status at Westgate, working in the grounds etc. He was convicted of a crime that was 20 years old at the time of his trial, and whilst for his own peace of mind he has accepted his sentence after exhausting the appeal process, he has always maintained his innocence.

"He has not been able to see his wife or his children for a number of years. I am confident that Commissioner Lamb looked at all of the circumstances of his case and deemed it safe and appropriate to allow a visit in this way. Stanford is an articulate and amicable man in his mid 40s now who is serving out the remainder of his sentence as a model prisoner.

"As a society, whilst we need to have a tough approach on crime, many right-thinking people will agree that we must always strive for rehabilitation and have compassion and view each case subjectively on its merits."

Mr. Easton's family could not be reached for comment last night.

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