claimed yesterday.

Mr. Archie Warner, who joined Vaucrosson's defence team only hours before he appeared in Supreme Court yesterday, said there were several "compelling medical reasons'' why the defendant should not be remanded in prison before he is sentenced.

Vaucrosson's morbid obesity, cardiovascular disease, pulmonary disease and sleeplessness could each lead to his death if he was imprisoned, Mr. Warner told Puisne Judge Mrs. Justice Wade.

"Don't put that on me,'' Mrs. Justice Wade retorted.

Vaucrosson, 61, was found guilty on Monday of stealing $393,782.58 from the beneficiaries of the late Percy Ball's trust fund.

He was released on bail until yesterday to allow his counsel to prepare his mitigation.

However his defence team -- made up of Ms Patricia Harvey and Mr. Michael Scott -- said yesterday they were not prepared to proceed and wanted Vaucrosson's current bail status to continue.

Mr. Warner, who was retained on Monday night, argued strenuously for one and a half hours that his client's health required that his bail be extended until he is sentenced.

He said that he had spoken to Vaucrosson's doctor who outlined that the defendant suffers from four related conditions any one of which could lead to his death.

Mr. Warner said Vaucrosson needed machinery to help him to breathe at night so that he would not die in his sleep.

Moreover, Mr. Warner said that with his poor health Vaucrosson would die if he was incarcerated.

Despite the defence pleas, Vaucrosson was remanded in custody yesterday and will be sentenced on January 10, 1996. Last night his status as a member of the Bermuda Bar was still unclear.

Bermuda Bar Association president Mrs. Elizabeth Jones said Vaucrosson's status will be discussed tomorrow at the Bar Council's meeting and she was not prepared to comment until that meeting had taken place.

During his speech, Mr. Warner explained that he had only been instructed on Monday night and required time to prepare a full and frank mitigation.

But Mrs. Justice Wade said that if the defence team asked for such an adjournment, her intention would be to withdraw bail and remand Vaucrosson in custody until sentencing.

"I can't treat Mr. Vaucrosson any differently unless there are highly persuasive reasons,'' she said.

But Mr. Warner staked his claim, saying that given the "complexity and protracted nature of the case,'' it was in Vaucrosson's best interest that his mitigation was put across fully.

Mr. Warner said the basis for the defence's mitigation rested on three pillars.

The first was Vaucrosson's age and health. The second was his desire to offer restitution to the victims of his crime and the third was his ability to advance certain valuable character references.

Unfortunately none of this information was available yesterday and that made the adjournment necessary.

Mr. Warner said the maximum sentence for the offence was five years for the theft of $393,782.58 from the beneficiaries of Percy ball's trust fund.

But he said that the defence would be advancing several "compelling mitigating factors'' that would persuade the court that a non-custodial sentence was the better course.

He said the medical evidence was "so cogent that it had to be heard from the medical authorities.'' Furthermore, the intended restitution combined with the medical facts when they were properly and fully advanced would point the court to the conclusion that Vaucrosson was not a candidate for prison, he said. "I'm not asking the court to treat Mr. Vaucrosson any differently,'' Mr. Warner continued.

Lawyer in custody "But there is precedent and history of bail being granted to people either pending sentence or on appeal.'' Mrs. Justice Wade said: "This is a sad, sad day for the legal fraternity when a barrister is convicted.

"Barristers hold themselves up as people who are trustworthy. There has to be a custodial sentence unless there are special circumstances. Otherwise people may not be willing to trust barristers.

"I do not see any evidence as to why Mr. Vaucrosson should be treated any differently.'' British Crown counsel Mr. Michael Pert QC said that it was "artificial and inappropriate'' to keep Vaucrosson out on bail pending his sentence because the court only granted a 24 hour adjournment on Monday to allow the defence team time to prepare.

Mr. Pert said that the present matter was "an extremely unsatisfactory state of affairs''.

Mrs. Justice Wade remanded Vaucrosson in custody until his sentence on January 10, 1996 but she advised his defence team, which has already filed notice to appeal the conviction, to pursue the matter with one of the two resident Court of Appeal Justices if they desired.