The United Bermuda Party will call for a public inquiry into the handling of the Rebecca Middleton case if Government does not ask Governor Thorold Masefield to order an independent investigation.

The UBP claims an inquiry is needed to restore the international reputation of Bermuda's justice system and to find out why no one has been convicted of raping and murdering the 17-year-old schoolgirl.

The Governor is expected to meet Premier Jennifer Smith shortly to discuss the pros and cons of an independent inquiry.

One factor which may weigh against the Governor calling an inquiry is that a tribunal would not have the power to subpeona overseas witnesses.

Two of the most important figures in the case, former Police Commissioner Colin Coxall and former Attorney General Elliott Mottley, no longer live on the Island.

Pressure is growing for a public inquiry after the Privy Council in London - Bermuda's final court of appeal -ruled on Monday that Justis Smith cannot be tried again for the murder of the Canadian teenager in July 1996.

The case has been shrouded in controversy. In December 1998, Puisne Judge Vincent Meerabux ruled there was no case to answer and ordered the jury to acquit Mr. Smith on the charge of murder. He also claimed the Crown had abused the process.

The Privy Councillors this week ruled there was strong circumstantial evidence against Mr. Smith which could have been put to a jury.

They described Mr. Justice Meerabux's conclusion that the circumstantial evidence was not strong enough as "perhaps astonishing'' and found there had been no abuse of process.

But they said the Crown has no right to appeal against an acquittal, even an erroneous one, because appeals can only be made on points of pure law.

Kirk Orlando Mundy was jailed for five years in 1996 after pleading guilty to being an accessory after the fact. DNA testing later showed Mundy's semen was inside the dead girl, but the Crown failed in a bid to have him charged with murder.

Shadow Legislative Affairs Minister John Barritt told The Royal Gazette yesterday that he hoped Government would request a public inquiry. If not, the UBP will do so.

He said: "We think its warranted in the circumstances. Notwithstanding the views of the parents and others involved, there are a number of questions that need to be answered.

"A young girl was murdered and she did not stab herself to death yet this is the outcome we have.

"We need to find out what went wrong, why and how. Something needs to be done so that people are held accountable and to make sure this sort of thing can be avoided in the future.

"Without pre-judging the outcome, there may be any number of recommendations that come out of this.

"This needs to be done in terms of the international repercussions. We all know the storm that was caused in Canada, not just the murder, but the other developments.

"The Canadians had a public inquiry following a similar case and I wonder if we don't have this inquiry whether the Canadians will think the poorer of us.'' Shadow Home Affairs Minister Michael Dunkley added: "Based on this diabolical set of circumstances, and with our proud reputation in Bermuda and throughout the world at risk, we need to make sure we get on top of it.

Middleton inquiry "We can't correct the past mistakes, but if we have an inquiry we can try to make sure they don't occur in the future. It is no consolation to the Middleton family but we need to learn from our mistakes, and if we don't have an inquiry we will not learn from our mistakes.'' Speaking to The Royal Gazette from Barbados yesterday, Mr. Mottley refused to answer questions about a possible public inquiry into the handling of the case.

But he said: "It's clear from the Privy Council that there was a case against Justis Smith to go to the jury and that there was no abuse of process by the Crown.

"It was the judge who refused to send the case to the jury and the Privy Council said there was a case to go to the jury and no abuse of process.'' It is thought that other factors may persuade the Governor against an inquiry are changes since the murder.

The Police have restructured the way they handle major crimes and the Attorney General's Chambers has now been split with the appointment of a political AG.

Deputy Governor Tim Gurney said: "The possibility of an inquiry is being actively considered by the Governor but he has not reached a decision.'' Neither the Premier, Attorney General Dame Lois Browne Evans, nor Mr. Justice Meerabux returned calls to The Royal Gazette yesterday.

John Barritt