A couple charged with the manslaughter of their baby daughter yesterday escaped being locked up until their trial after a magistrate accepted they did not intentionally breach bail conditions when they returned to the Island late.

An arrest warrant was issued at Magistrates' Court on Monday for Amenemhet and Maatkari TaMerry, formerly Dr. Clark and Regina Godwin, after they failed to return to Bermuda on Friday, as agreed.

The couple arrived on the Island on the British Airways flight from London at 6.15 p.m. on Monday.

At Magistrates' Court yesterday, Crown counsel Wayne Caines requested they be remanded in custody until their trial and forfeit their bail of $10,000 each and like sureties for what he called a "serious breach" of bail conditions.

Saul Froomkin, counsel for the accused, accepted it was agreed the TaMerry's should return on Friday, but their bail conditions stated only that they should surrender their travel documents on Monday and report to a Police station between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. that day.

He said their planned flight was disrupted because of the terrorist attacks in the United States and the earliest they could return was Monday night.

Mr. Froomkin said the Crown did not have the courtesy to tell him it was applying for an arrest warrant on Monday, and he was shocked to hear this. "When I heard there was a summons, to say I was shocked was an understatement. I tried on five occasions to contact Mr. (Crown counsel Juan) Wolffe and when I spoke to him this morning he confirmed my note that the defendants were not to be in court yesterday morning at all," said Mr. Froomkin.

"I was not advised by the Department of Public Prosecutions' office that this was coming to court. I understand this was coming from the Police.

"My clients were told by the Police to be here at 9.30 a.m. today, and the surety is here as well. But for the problems with the flights, they could have been here (in Bermuda) on Friday. If I had been advised I would have been in court yesterday and advised of the circumstances and hopefully we would not have been here."

Magistrate William Francis asked Mr. Froomkin: "You are saying there was no wilful breach (of bail)?"

He replied: "I am saying there was no breach." Mr. Caines said the Police case officer had brought it to the attention of the Crown when the TaMerry's did not arrive on Friday and the Director of Public Prosecution's office was obliged to bring the matter to court.

Mr. Francis said: "While I agree this is a serious case and bail should be regarded as serious, nonetheless, bearing all the rules we have concerning bail, I do not find this technical sort of breach either wilful, or such as to require remanding in custody or withdrawal of bail." He continued bail for the TaMerry's, who are accused of the manslaughter of their ten-month-old daughter A-Mya.