Steven Causwell, the St Andrew businessman who was sentenced in 2016 to life in prison or the 2008 murder of his girlfriend Nadia Mitchell, has lost his bid to petition the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London.

This comes after the Appeal Court twice rejected his challenge to his conviction and sentence.

Following the striking down of an application for leave to appeal the sentence and the conviction by a single judge of the Appeal Court in February 2019, Causwell had renewed the application to be heard before a full court instead. However, after hearings on October 16, 17 and 18, 2019, as well as on November 18 last year, the panel led by Appeal Court President Justice Dennis Morrison, Justice Paulette Williams and Justice Nicole Simmons upheld the sentence imposed by trial judge Justice Carol Lawrence-Beswick in the Home Circuit Court in 2016.

According to the ruling handed down in 2020, “there is no basis on which this conviction should be disturbed”.

Causwell then applied to the court for leave to appeal that decision before the Privy Council arguing that a delay of eight years, during which evidence and witnesses which could support his case were either lost or otherwise unavailable, was in breach of his right to a fair trial within a reasonable time, based on the Constitution. He also argued that he was deprived of his right to a fair trial under the constitution and suffered prejudice as a result of several factors.

The Appeal Court, in assessing the grounds of the application over three sittings between July and December this year, said from the findings made by the court it was clear that the court was applying the relevant principles in determining whether or not there was a breach of the appellant’s right to a fair trial.

“There was no question as to the interpretation of the constitution relating to the matters raised in questions 1(a) and (b). Therefore, the applicant has failed to establish that these questions should be submitted to her Majesty in Council as of right,” it stated.

As to the question of Causwell being denied his right to a fair trial, the tribunal held that, “even though the police had breached their duty to collect all relevant evidence, the applicant’s constitutional right to a fair trial had not been breached”.

It said the court, in addressing the complaints in relation to the breach of the applicant’s right to a fair trial, as guaranteed by the Constitution, was applying the relevant principles to the circumstances of this case in order to determine if there were any breaches that could constitute a violation of the applicant’s right to a fair trial that could have impacted his conviction.

“It is palpable that the court did not engage in interpreting the constitution in any novel way or at all. We conclude, therefore, that the applicant’s application for leave to appeal to Her Majesty in Council as of right must fail,” the Appeal Court said further.

In its conclusion, the court further noted that Causwell “has failed to satisfy this court that any of the questions call for an interpretation of the constitutional provisions said to be engaged”.

“Likewise, the bar has not been met for us to conclude that the issues raised, and questions posed by the applicant, raise any question of exceptional public importance wherein it is desirable in the public interest that a further appeal should be brought. We, therefore, make the following order: The motion for conditional leave to appeal to Her Majesty in Council, filed on 8 December 2020, is refused,” the court stated in the judgment handed down on Wednesday.

In the evidence led before the court during the trial it emerged that Causwell and Mitchell had been involved in a stormy relationship for about eight years before Mitchell began another relationship in early 2008. By July 16 of that year, however, Mitchell was dead.

According to statements from police investigators, Causwell, whom the court heard was the last to see her alive, had told them that he visited Mitchell’s Oaklands apartment on the night of the 15th after she asked him to come over, but that he had got into a fight during which he punched her in the eye.

He further said Mitchell stormed from the apartment and that he waited a few minutes before calling her and texting her. Causwell said he got no response and went in search of Mitchell, which took him downstairs where he found her lying motionless. He said he tried to speak to her and shook her but she didn’t respond. Eventually he said he lifted her up and took her to hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Recounting the events of that night the convicted murderer said, “Nadia and I were in the apartment talking. She had called me there to talk. An argument ensued. She suddenly started hitting and grabbing at me. I hit back at her, get her away from me. I honestly can’t say where my hand caught Nadia. I have nothing in … I had nothing in my hand when I hit at her. She then stormed out of the apartment. I did not kill Nadia… I can’t say how [the deceased] died.”

After expressing his sorrow at her death, he went on to again stress that he was not responsible for her death which, he said, was “really, really, an unfortunate and tragic situation”.

The court also heard from two pathologists. The government pathologist who performed the post-mortem said the cause of death was subdural haemorrhage and cerebral contusion, which is bruising of the brain due to blunt force injury to the head, due to impact with a blunt object.

The doctor opined that the degree of force which would have been necessary to cause those injuries to the head was severe force, such as hitting or being banged against a wall or on the floor. He further said the ante-mortem injuries would be consistent with the female being involved in a fight and said the post-mortem injuries were consistent with a dragging on the floor or similar surface which was a little rough or during the transportation to the hospital and that the injuries were not consistent with a fall from a height.

Mitchell had 27 injuries in total, 19 ante-mortem injuries, to include the fatal blow that caused her death, and eight post-mortem injuries, the court was told.