prison sentence rejected by Chief Justice Austin Ward.

The offender, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was convicted by a magistrate earlier this year of having unlawful carnal knowledge of a girl aged 14 years.

According to the complainant's testimony, the incident took place between her and the man, who were members of the same household, in the summer of 1997 while on a journey between their home and Maximart Grocery store in Sandys Parish.

Evidence used to find the defendant guilty included the fact that the complainant conceived a child and gave birth in May of 1998.

The man appealed against his two-year prison sentence on the grounds that, during the trial, the magistrate did not examine his case in enough detail.