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Citation
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Judgment date
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| December 2000 |
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An unequivocal guilty plea bars appeal; armed robbery conviction and minimum 30-year sentence upheld.
Criminal procedure – Guilty plea – Plea unequivocal – Summary rejection of appeal under section 360(1) Criminal Procedure Act; Armed robbery – use of firearm – minimum sentence under the Minimum Sentences Act upheld.
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1 December 2000 |
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Corroborated accomplice evidence and lack of prejudice from witness presence sustain robbery conviction.
* Criminal law – robbery with violence – sufficiency of evidence – corroboration of accomplice evidence by independent proof (disclosure of vehicle registration, discovery of stolen goods, vehicle owner’s confirmation, subsequent sale).
* Evidence – presence of other prosecution witnesses during testimony affects weight not admissibility; no prejudice where testimony unaffected.
* Appeal – second appeal limited to points of law; factual reappraisal and insufficiency of evidence generally not entertained.
* Comparative outcomes – differing results for co-accused may be explained by differences in evidence and do not automatically entitle another accused to acquittal.
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1 December 2000 |
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An appeal lacking specified points of law is not "incompetent" if authorised; a meritless appeal should be dismissed, not struck out.
* Criminal procedure – Appeal from subordinate court – Section 6(7)(a) Appellate Jurisdiction Act – Appeals limited to points of law; Rule 65(2) – specification of points of law; distinction between incompetent (jurisdictional/procedural defect) and meritless appeals; dismissal appropriate where grounds lack points of law but appeal is authorised.
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1 December 2000 |
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Convictions quashed: forgery unproven and particulars for false document omitted essential intent to defraud, a fatal defect.
* Criminal law – Forgery – Essential elements: existence/tendering of document, falsity and intent to defraud – proof required; failure to relate elements to evidence is fatal.
* Criminal procedure – Particulars of offence – Must aver essential ingredients (intent to defraud/deceive) to give accused fair notice; omission fatal.
* Criminal procedure – Curability under s.388 Criminal Procedure Act – Material omissions in particulars that negate essential elements are not curable.
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1 December 2000 |
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Reported
Extra-judicial confession to a Justice of the Peace held voluntary and sufficient to uphold murder conviction; custodial confessions lacked independent corroboration.
Criminal law – Murder – Confession – Extra-judicial statement (Exh. P.1) – Voluntariness and admissibility – Retraction and requirement for independent corroboration of confessions made in custody – Conduct after offence (sale of cattle; showing scene) insufficient as independent corroboration unless free and independent.
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1 December 2000 |
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Reported
Conviction upheld on recent possession; 1994 amendment mandates 30-year minimum for robberies involving personal violence.
Criminal law – Robbery with violence – Evidence of recent possession and identification – Minimum Sentences Act (Act No. 6 of 1994) – 30-year minimum where robbery involves personal violence, use of weapon or company.
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1 December 2000 |
(From the Judgment and Order ofthe High Court ofTanzania at Mwanza, Chipata, J., in Criminal Appeal No. 22 of 1996) Criminal Law - Robbery with violence • Appellant found in possession ofthe robbed bicycle ten days after the date ofthe robbery - Whether appellant was properly convicted - Section 286 of the Penal Code. Criminal Practice and Procedure - Sentencing - Minimum sentences for robbery and for armed robbery - Section 5(b) of the Minimum Sentences Act as amended by Acts Number 10 of 1989 and 6 of 1994. |
1 December 2000 |
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Applicant failed to show irreparable harm; stay of execution refused and application dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure – Stay of execution pending appeal; requirement of showing irreparable loss; developments on disputed land compensable by damages; Rule 9(2) Court Rules 1979 (appeal does not bar execution).
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1 December 2000 |
| November 2000 |
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Respondent’s failure to take essential steps to institute an appeal justified striking out the notice of appeal under Rule 82.
Civil procedure — Appeal procedure — Failure to take an essential step to institute appeal within prescribed time — Possession of judgment and proceedings — Awaiting Registrar's Certificate not a valid excuse — Striking out notice of appeal under Rule 82; costs awarded.
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24 November 2000 |
| September 2000 |
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Appeal dismissed: conviction upheld on credible eyewitness identification and properly admitted voluntary extra-judicial confession.
* Criminal law – identification evidence – credibility of eyewitness who knew accused and effect of chaotic circumstances on witness discrepancy. * Evidence Act ss.65 and 67(1)(c) – admissibility of certified copies as secondary evidence. * Confession – voluntariness and proof under s.28 where made in presence of magistrate. * Corroboration – confession corroborated by independent identification evidence.
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4 September 2000 |
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Appeal dismissed for failure to lodge a memorandum of appeal and because sentence was completed (rule 65(5)).
* Criminal appeal — failure to prosecute appeal — notice of appeal given but memorandum not lodged — completion of sentence — dismissal under Court of Appeal Rules 1979, r.65(5).
* Sentencing — reduction of mandatory term by High Court due to timing of offence — procedural effect when appellant does not file appeal documents.
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4 September 2000 |
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4 September 2000 |
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Murder convictions quashed where cause of death and participation of appellants were not proved.
* Criminal law – murder – sufficiency of evidence – necessity to establish cause of death and unlawful killing to sustain murder conviction. * Criminal procedure – inferences and conjecture – appellate scrutiny of speculative findings. * Evidence – linking absent: lawful procedural acts (warrant, arrest, lock-up, transfer) insufficient to prove culpable homicide without further proof of causation or participation.
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4 September 2000 |
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Appellants' murder convictions quashed where cause of death was unproven and participation by co-accused was speculative.
* Criminal law – Murder – Conviction requires proof of cause of death and causal link to accused.
* Evidence – Circumstantial inference and conjecture – Trial court must not convict on speculation.
* Participation – Accused must be linked by evidence to a common plan or to acts causing death.
* Appellate review – Insufficient evidence requires quashing of conviction and setting aside of sentence.
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4 September 2000 |
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Murder convictions quashed where cause of death was unproven and no evidence linked appellants to the killing.
Criminal law — Murder: conviction unsustainable where cause of death not established; convictions cannot rest on conjecture. Joint enterprise/common intention — requires evidence of participation or agreement; mere suspicion insufficient. Evidence — role of arresting officer limited to lawful acts; transfer or detention alone does not prove homicidal liability.
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4 September 2000 |
| June 2000 |
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(Appeal from the Conviction ofthe High Court ofTanzania at Mwanza, Masanche, J. dated 6 May 1994 in Criminal Appeal No.339 of 1992). Criminal Procedure - Substituted change - Right of accused — Be informed.Criminal Procedure - Substituted Change - Right accused to cross-examine the witness in the new charge |
12 June 2000 |
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Appeal against murder conviction dismissed; no evidence of insanity and death sentence upheld as prescribed by law.
* Criminal law – Murder – Dismemberment and disposal of body parts – Evidence establishing killing.
* Criminal responsibility – Insanity plea – Lack of supporting evidence; defendant's admission of being of sound mind.
* Sentence – Death sentence examined as prescribed by law; appeal dismissed.
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12 June 2000 |
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Unwritten, allegedly coerced confessions without reliable corroboration rendered the murder convictions unsafe and were quashed.
Criminal law – Confessions – Requirement that confessions be properly recorded – Trial within a trial to determine voluntariness – Allegations of torture/coercion by traditional security (Sungusungu) – Need for independent corroboration of repudiated confessions – Dock identification and disputed discovery evidence insufficient corroboration – Murder convictions quashed as unsafe.
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12 June 2000 |
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Reported
Whether identification and procedural rejection of alibis justified the appellants' murder convictions and death sentences.
* Criminal law – Identification evidence – Whether visual identification at scene proved beyond reasonable doubt where witnesses did not name suspects before arrest and police searches were general.
* Criminal procedure – Alibi notice – Failure to give statutory notice affects weight of alibi but does not mandate automatic rejection.
* Evidence – Flight – Attempted flight probative but not conclusive of guilt; must be considered in context of police operation.
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12 June 2000 |
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Convictions quashed: identification unsafe and alibis improperly rejected, appeal allowed.
Criminal law – Identification evidence – failure to name suspect at earliest opportunity – general police operations undermining reliability; Criminal procedure – alibi notice under s.194(4) Criminal Procedure Act – non-compliance affects weight under s.194(6), not automatic rejection; Evidence – flight as indicator of guilt – contextual assessment required.
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12 June 2000 |
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Identification at the scene was unreliable and alibis unfairly rejected; convictions and death sentences quashed.
* Criminal law – Identification evidence – failure to name suspects at earliest opportunity undermines reliability of visual identification. * Criminal procedure – Alibi notices (s.194(6)) – non‑compliance affects weight but does not mandate automatic rejection. * Evidence – Flight as circumstantial evidence – not invariably proof of guilt. * Police procedure – General search operations and untendered seized items weaken reliance on possession evidence. * Burden – Guilt must be proved beyond reasonable doubt; convictions unsafe where identification and procedural defects exist.
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12 June 2000 |
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Appellate re-hearing upheld a reliable identification conviction but quashed other convictions where evidence and alibi raised reasonable doubt.
* Criminal law – Murder – Identification evidence – Reliability where witness knew accused beforehand, saw accused in sufficient light and named him during encounter.
* Criminal law – Alibi and association – Presence at a scene does not alone prove participation; alibi may create reasonable doubt.
* Criminal procedure – First appeal is by way of re-hearing – appellate court must re-appraise evidence.
* Procedure – Appeal abates on death of appellant in custody.
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12 June 2000 |
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Appellant's robbery conviction upheld on discovery‑linked evidence of firearm; corporal punishment added subject to medical fitness.
* Criminal law – robbery with violence – conviction upheld where co‑accused confession led to discovery of weapon. * Evidence – repudiated confession to police – admissibility when it produces a discovery. * Chain‑link/corroboration – evidence of discovery by witness sufficient to connect accused to weapon. * Sentencing – Minimum Sentences Act requires corporal punishment for robbery with violence; appellate variation and medical fitness consideration.
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12 June 2000 |
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Appellant's robbery conviction quashed where charge was altered without informing him of s234(2) rights to recall or re‑examine witnesses.
* Criminal procedure – alteration of charge after some witnesses have testified – section 234(2) Criminal Procedure Act 1985 – duty to call upon accused to plead and right to recall or further cross‑examine witnesses – failure to inform unrepresented accused prejudicial – conviction quashed. * Discretion on retrial – lengthy incarceration weighed in declining retrial.
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12 June 2000 |
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12 June 2000 |
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Conviction unsafe where a child witness's materially contradictory account lacked adequate corroboration.
Criminal law – conviction based primarily on child witness – material contradictions between courtroom testimony and earlier statements – adequacy of corroboration by other witnesses – appellate intervention where trial judge fails to address material discrepancies.
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12 June 2000 |
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Appellants' murder convictions quashed due to material contradictions undermining key child witness credibility.
* Criminal law – murder – reliance on child witness – material contradictions between viva voce evidence and prior statement undermining credibility.
* Evidence – corroboration – assessment of PW1 and PW3 evidence and improper discounting of truthful but unsupportive witness.
* Appeal – safety of conviction – benefit of the doubt where prosecution case is unreliable; assessors’ advice relevant.
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12 June 2000 |
(From the conviction of the High Court of Tanzania at Musoma, Masanche, J., dated 5 December 1994, in Criminal Case No. 181 of 1991) Criminal Practice and Procedure - Defence of alibi - Failure to give notice of intention to plead alibi - Consequences of failure to give notice of intention to rely upon alibi - Section 194 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1985. |
12 June 2000 |