Oscar Ingraham v. Regina, Court of Appeal of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas (2020)

In 2011, a man broke into the victim's home, stole money, and then raped her. She was transported to a hospital after the incident, where a rape kit was performed. Oscar Ingraham was subsequently convicted of the rape, armed robbery, and burglary, and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Oscar applied for an extension to appeal his convictions and sentence. He argued that there was insufficient evidence to convict him, and that the judge failed to explain the significance of the DNA evidence to the jury. In order to determine whether to grant or refuse the extension of time, the Court of Appeal considered the length of the delay, the reason for the delay, the likelihood of success of the appeal, and the prejudice, if any, to the victim. The Court found that the DNA evidence obtained from the rape kit merely showed that Oscar, as well as all of his male relatives, could not be excluded as a source; therefore, it was not possible to conclude without doubt that he was the perpetrator. The Court also found that the prosecution relied solely on DNA and circumstantial evidence, and not visual identification. Precedent had established that there must be evidence independent of a DNA profile match in order to link the accused to a crime scene. The Court permitted the appeal and held that the DNA evidence did not sufficiently connect the Oscar to the crime scene. The judge had also failed to properly instruct the jury on the significance of this DNA finding. Oscar's convictions were overturned.

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