A thief jailed for eight years prison had his appeal thrown out of Supreme Court yesterday after he took take the law into his own hands.

Anthony Webster Swan, 42 of Woodlawn Road, Sandys, appealed his eight year prison sentence, representing himself, on grounds that evidence was not brought into the court room and that Puisne Judge Charles-Etta Simmons had been prejudicial towards him during his trial in April.

Swan represented himself during the trial as well. Swan was convicted of taking a Citizen watch and money from Michael and Julie Stephens on April 22 of last year while the couple were at their Fairylands residence. Appeals Court President Sir James Astwood allowed Swan to continue after he explained that there had been a conflict of interest between him and his lawyer during the preliminary hearing.

?I?m confident to bring up all the points of law,? Swan said. Swan claimed that it had been prejudicial that Pyrex dish from which his fingerprint had been taken was brought into court.

He said he was denied the chance to show the court that he would not have been able to lift the dish with one finger. But the one fingerprint perfectly matched Swan?s print. Justice Philip Clough, who was presiding with Sir James, told Swan that fingerprints are lifted from evidence. ?If they lift evidence from an enormous chest of drawers are you saying that they should have brought them in here,? Mr. Justice Clough said.

Swan also said that the summation by Mrs. Justice Simmons was prejudicial when she told the jury not to believe the defendant. But on further reading of Mrs. Justice Simmons? summation it was revealed that she had told the jury to be careful with the fact that there was only the fingerprint evidence that put Swan at the scene.

Swan?s trial had set precedent regarding fingerprint evidence as the benchmark had been a 16 point ridge. In this case, the court accepted Swan?s ten point ridge sample. Sir James told Swan he had learned a lot over the years in court but dismissed his appeal.