A convicted killer lost his appeal yesterday, but challenged Bermuda?s prison system to give him the help he still needs after 17 years in jail.

Leroy Elmer Burgess, 37, was convicted in December, 2002 of assaulting and doing bodily harm to Prisons officer Stuart Hollis. Burgess is currently serving a life sentence for the brutal manslaughter of German tourist Antje Herkommer in 1992.

He appealed the assault conviction in Appeals Court yesterday, claiming he was justifiably provoked to act as he did.

The three Appeals Court judges did not agree with him, however, and his appeal was dismissed.

In June, 2001 Burgess confronted Mr. Hollis after the officer told another inmate Burgess had threatened the inmate.

Saying it was the anniversary of his victim?s death, and that he was already angry and upset, Burgess said he became provoked when Mr. Hollis said he was ?in for murder? ? failing to make the distinction between murder and manslaughter. He then assaulted the officer.

However, both a magistrate and a Supreme Court justice ruled there was no provocation in this instance; that is, that they believed an ordinary person would not have reacted in the way Burgess did.

He was therefore convicted of the attack, though sentencing was delayed until he had exhausted all appeals.

In Appeals Court yesterday Burgess said he was a different person at the time of the attack.

Already in the anger management and violent sex offenders programmes at the prison, he said the anniversary of his victim?s death left him under ?pressure and tension?, and he was unable to deal with his emotions properly.

The prison does not have the support system in place to help him deal with his issues, he said. ?I stand here not just for me, but to challenge the Minister (of Public Safety Randy Horton) and the prisons to make some changes.

?Just because I?m serving life, doesn?t mean tomorrow throw away the key. I?m willing to make changes.?