The Chief Justice ruled yesterday that the fact that a man was diagnosed with HIV was not a valid reason for a jail sentence imposed on him to be altered.

The man had originally been charged with possession of cocaine and ecstasy and trafficking in March 1997. The first court had found him guilty of the possession of 90 ecstasy pills and not guilty of possession of cocaine and he was jailed for five months and fined of €600 on May 12.

The man then filed an appeal claiming that the sentence was excessive, that there was a long time taken to bring him to trial and that the sentence did not take into consideration the positive progress he had made in his drug addiction treatment. He also pointed out that he was suffering from HIV, a potentially fatal condition.

Chief Justice Vincent De Gaetano, sitting in the Court of Criminal Appeal, said that the fact that the man was HIV positive was not a valid reason for his sentence to be altered. The court noted that the man had entered San Blas rehabilitation centre only three months ago, which showed that he was still battling his addiction.

The Chief Justice noted that in 2002 the man had been found guilty of possessing cocaine and was conditionally discharged.

Taking these factors into consideration, the court found no valid reason why it should change the original sentence and so confirmed the judgment.