The Status of Criminal Libel in Grenada After Worme v. Commissioner of Police

In January 2004, the Privy Council, the final court of appeal for all British Caribbean states, held that a criminal libel statute providing for the two-year imprisonment of publishers libeling government officials was constitutional and consistent with a democratic society. Over the years, the constitutionality of criminal libel laws in the United States has been attacked with only marginally greater success than the Grenadian law. This article provides a background to the development of criminal libel laws in the two regions; traces the 2004 decision, the threats and actions brought against the media by the Grenadian government in its aftermath; and discusses the likely effect that it could have on the law of libel in the British Caribbean.