Opposition MP John Barritt has re-launched his bid to change the law to allow prosecutors to launch an appeal on any grounds if a defendant has been acquitted.

Currently the Crown can only appeal on matters of law but Mr. Barritt's bill would allow appeals to be launched on other grounds.

Mr. Barritt said the absence of this law had stopped the Crown from reopening the notorious botched Rebecca Middleton murder case.

In late 2004, Mr. Barritt tabled a bill to allow prosecutors to appeal for a new trial if a judge had thrown out a case by ruling there was no case to answer — as happened in the Justis Smith murder trial.

That bill would have allowed the Director of Public Prosecutions to appeal on fact or mixed law and fact but Mr. Barritt dropped the bill after getting indications that the Government might table the bill itself.

But nothing has happened and now Mr. Barritt said he sensed a changing mood on the Government benches.

He said Attorney General Phil Perinchief had indicated he wanted a look at the double jeopardy law which stops defendants being tried on the same facts twice.

"I wrote to him but I have not heard from him since."

But he said Senator Perinchief had since expressed interest in modernising the justice system while Government MPs had also expressed an interest in change but Mr. Barritt declined to say how much support he believed he had.

He said his amendment act, tabled in the House yesterday, would allow the prosecutors to appeal matters on question of fact alone, or a question of mixed law and fact or any ground that appears to the court to be sufficient ground of appeal.

"The absence of such provisions has been remarked upon often, including in the Rebecca Middleton case and in other cases in Bermuda where the prosecution has not been able to appeal a decision that the crown thought was wrong.

"It is time to make the right decision which is to put the prosecution and the defence on an equal footing."

Mr. Barritt said the UBP wanted to send a message to criminals that the justice system was effective in detecting, convicting and properly punishing them.

"Meanwhile those who obey the law, the majority of this island, want to live their lives free from fear in security and safety knowing the justice system works in their interests."