A man who admitted fatally stabbing his 28-year-old girlfriend is expected to appear before the Court of Appeal to challenge his life sentence.

Anthony Davis was sentenced to spend at least 23 years behind bars in March for the 2021 murder of Morissa Moniz.

Ms Moniz was found in an unresponsive state at a house in Smith’s after police responded to a reported domestic incident. She was later pronounced dead at the scene by an on-call physician.

Davis pleaded guilty to the murder in February and voiced remorse for his actions, with the court hearing that alcohol played a role in the fatal attack.

While defence counsel argued that he should not receive a sentence of more than 21 years, prosecutors called for a life sentence with a requirement that Davis serve a minimum of 23 to 30 years behind bars before he was eligible for parole.

Puisne Judge Shade Subair Williams said Davis and Ms Moniz had an “abusive, violent and toxic” relationship and that the victim had been about to leave her abuser when he fatally stabbed her at the home they shared.

She added: “This court must send a clear message of deterrence against domestic violence against woman.”

The case is one of several set to come before the Court of Appeal in its next sitting, scheduled to begin on Monday.

The court is also expected to hear the appeals of Maleke Martin and Locksley Cummings, who were both convicted of sex offences against minors.

In April, Martin was sentenced in the Supreme Court to 13½ years in prison on one count of sexual exploitation by a person in a position of trust and 16 years on another count of sexual exploitation by a person in a position of trust.

He also received six years for showing offensive material to a child.

His case was the first heard in the Supreme Court under new legislation which allowed children to testify before the start of the trial, with the recorded evidence played for the jury.

Cummings was sentenced to 35 years behind bars in the Supreme Court in April after he was found guilty of five counts of sexual exploitation.

The offences spanned years and involved two victims, who were sisters.

The court is also expected to hear an appeal by Raymond Charlton, a former One Bermuda Alliance candidate and Wedco chairman who was convicted in Magistrates’ Court last year of sexual assault.

Charlton had denied making lewd comments to the victim and grabbing her buttocks on August 22, 2018, at her home in Sandys.

He appealed his conviction to the Supreme Court, but the appeal was thrown out and he was given a suspended sentence.

The Court of Appeal is further scheduled to hear an appeal by Shae Butterfield, who was convicted of two counts of possessing drugs with intent to supply in a 2019 incident.

He previously appealed his conviction to the Supreme Court, arguing that the Magistrates’ Court had not properly considered inconsistencies in the Crown’s case, but the appeal was dismissed last year.

The court is also expected to hear a series of civil matters, including four cases launched against the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board and two cases related to the Commission of Inquiry into Historic Losses of Land in Bermuda.

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