Section 27Part 2 — Punishments
Partly suspended sentence
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27. (1) Notwithstanding section 22(3), a court which passes on an offender who is not less than eighteen years of age a sentence of imprisonment for a term of not less than six months and not exceeding two years may order that, after the offender had served part of the sentence in prison, the remainder of it shall be held in suspense.
The part to be held in suspense shall be not more than seventy-five percent and not less than twenty-five per cent of the whole period of the sentence, and the offender shall not be required to serve that part unless it is restored under subsection (3) and this shall be explained to the offender by the court using ordinary language and stating the substantial effect of that subsection.
If, at any time after the making of the order, the offender commits in the Islands during the whole period of the sentence another offence punishable with imprisonment then, subject to subsection (4), a competent court as defined in Penal Code (2026 Revision) Section 27 c Revised as at 31st December, 2025 Page 25 subsection (9) shall restore part of the sentence held in suspense and order the offender to serve it.
If the court, considering the offender’s case with a view to exercising the powers of subsection (3), is of the opinion that, in view of all the circumstances which have arisen since the order was made including the facts of the subsequent offence, it would be unjust to restore the part of the sentence held in suspense, it shall either restore a lesser part or declare, with reasons stated, its decision to make no order under the subsection.
Where a court exercises those powers, it may order that the restored part of the original sentence shall take effect immediately or that the term shall commence on the expiration of another term of imprisonment passed on the offender by that or another court.
Where an offender is convicted by a summary court of an offence punishable with imprisonment and the court is satisfied that the offence was committed during the whole period of a sentence passed by the Grand Court with an order under subsection (1) —
it may, if it thinks fit, commit the offender in custody or on bail to the Grand Court; or
if it does not, it shall give written notice of the conviction to the Grand Court.
For the purposes of this section, a sentence of imprisonment passed on an offender on appeal with an order under subsection (1) shall be treated as having been passed (with such an order) by the court by which the offender was originally sentenced.
This section does not apply to a sentence for any offence against —
section 180; or
the Traffic Act (2026 Revision) save offences contravening —
section 68(m), 77, 89(2), 91(1), 92, 93(1)(a) to (l) inclusive, 98 or 99; or regulations made thereunder which are equivalent to, in substitution for or repeal and replace any offences under section 68(b), (c), (n), (q), (r), (v), or (w) of the repealed Traffic Law (Revised).
any of the provisions of the said Traffic Act (2026 Revision) or any
In this section —
in relation to a sentence of imprisonment part of which is held in suspense, a competent court under subsection (3) is —
the Grand Court; or court before which the offender appears or is brought; Section 28 Penal Code (2026 Revision) Page 26 Revised as at 31st December, 2025 c
where the sentence was passed by a summary court, any summary
“the whole period” of a sentence means the time which the offender would have had to serve in prison if the sentence had been passed without an order under subsection (1) and the offender had no remission of sentence granted to the offender under section 23 1 (now repealed) of the Prisons Act (2021 Revision). [ 1 see note 3 on p. 136]