accused killer of Rebecca Middleton By Raymond Hainey Murder accused Justis Smith was yesterday ordered to face retrial for the killing of Canadian schoolgirl Rebecca Middleton.

Court of Appeal president Sir James Astwood and two other judges backed the Crown's bid to overturn an earlier Supreme Court decision that Smith, 19, should walk free because of an abuse of process and insufficient evidence.

The ruling means Smith could be back in Supreme Court to face a new trial on the charge of premeditated murder -- a hanging offence -- in as little as six months.

Sir James, speaking on behalf of the three-man appeals tribunal, told a packed courtroom: "We allow the appeal and set aside the acquittal of the respondent and in the interests of justice we remit the case to the Supreme Court to be retried.'' And minutes after the decision was announced, Rebecca's father David said: "We're very pleased -- this is what we were hoping for.'' Mr. Middleton said the decision had "not exactly'' restored his faith in the Island's justice system: "But we're getting there -- we're working on that part.

Mr. Middleton said: "I think there are still a lot of things they have to do to make it a little better and a little smoother.'' The trio of appeal judges also took a swipe at both the trial judge, Puisne Judge Vincent Meerabux, and the Attorney General's Chambers handling of the Supreme Court case. Their judgment said: "The case against the respondent was not presented in a very professional manner.

"The case required proper and efficient investigation before charges were formally laid to ensure that the proper persons who had committed the murder were brought to trial.

"But having said that, we have to decide whether the judge was in error when he found that an abuse of the process of the court had occurred.'' And they added: "The judge in this instance has misdirected himself when considering the quality of the evidence and usurped the function of the jury in deciding to withdraw the case from them on the no case to answer case submission.

"The jury could properly have inferred from the evidence before them that the respondent was a party to the killing of Rebecca.'' Rebecca's nearly-naked body was found on Ferry Reach, St. George's, in the early hours of July 3, 1996.

She died after she and friend Jasmine Meens, whose father Rick lives in Bermuda, accepted lifts by three men riding two motorcycles.

Jasmine got home safely -- but Becky was raped, tortured and stabbed to death in a murder that has haunted the Island and its judiciary.

Both Mr. Meens and Mr. Middleton confirmed they would appear in an upcoming `warts and all' US TV documentary on Bermuda.

But Mr. Meens insisted: "It's not to put the country down or drag it through the mud.'' Later that year, Kirk Mundy pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the murder and was jailed for five years.

Crown attempts to have Mundy re-charged with Smith as joint murderers failed all the way to the Privy Council in London.

Smith was tried alone last December -- but walked from court after Mr. Justice Meerabux's ruling.

His trial ended just days after then-Attorney General, Elliott Mottley, left the Island under a cloud for his part in the bungled prosecution.

The judges said: "In our view there is no law or rule inhibiting the prosecution from proceeding in the way they did, except it was most unfortunate that the prosecution acted precipitately in charging the respondent alone with the killing and proceeding to accept Mundy's plea as an accessory, which prevented them from later charging him with murder jointly with the respondent.'' The judges also dismissed Court of Appeal claims by Smith's QC, English barrister John Perry, that they had no jurisdiction to consider an appeal.

The judgement said: "We hold that this court has the jurisdiction to entertain the appeal, since the error of the judge was an error in law alone.

"On the no-case submission, he exceeded his powers to stop the trial.'' The judgement concluded: "We would say that our jurisdiction is sufficient to entertain the appeal, as, for the reasons we have given, the judge's ruling on the abuse of process is in error on a fundamental question of law alone.'' Return to trial: Justis Smith, the alleged killer of 17-year-old Rebecca Middleton, is led aways in chains yesterday, after a Bermuda Appeals Court overturned an earlier ruling dismissing all charges against him.

MURDER MUR