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Citation
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Judgment date
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| December 1976 |
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High Court reinstated Primary Court decision, finding respondent failed to prove ownership of cattle and District Court wrongly overturned it.
CiviI procedure; evidence — ownership of movable property; credibility of hearsay evidence from deceased; appellate review of Primary Court unanimous findings supported by reconciliation board minutes.
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31 December 1976 |
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Appellate court upheld convictions and sentences where identification and recovered military arms corroborated involvement in violent robbery.
* Criminal law – Identification evidence – sufficiency and credibility – deference to trial magistrate who saw and heard witnesses. * Criminal law – Corroboration – recovery of military rifle, working pin and bullets matching crime‑scene ammunition. * Criminal law – Unlawful possession of military arms – possession of army property. * Sentencing – violent armed robbery – custodial sentences of 14 and 12 years upheld.
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30 December 1976 |
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Convictions quashed where police lacked reasonable grounds to suspect radio was stolen, making arrest and escape charge unlawful.
Criminal law – Possession of suspected stolen property – Requirement of reasonable suspicion for lawful arrest – Effect of unlawful arrest on charge of escape from lawful custody – Appellate review of magistrate's factual findings and interpretation of witness evidence.
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29 December 1976 |
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Conviction substituted for stealing by a public servant; intent to repay does not negate fraudulent conversion.
Criminal law – Stealing by public servant – Property need not be government property; fraudulent conversion established by retention and false accounts; intention to repay does not negate fraud (s.258(2)(e)); rectification of conviction under s.346 Criminal Procedure Code; application of Minimum Sentences Act 1972 (minimum 3 years).
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28 December 1976 |
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Possession five years after theft is not "recent"; conviction, sentence and compensation set aside.
Criminal law – Receiving stolen property – Circumstantial evidence and doctrine of recent possession – What constitutes "recent possession"; Burden of proof – Misdirection; Sentencing – Misapplication of Minimum Sentences Act; Compensation – requirement of evidential basis for valuation.
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22 December 1976 |
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Appellate court quashed convictions where sole witness’s improbable account and inadequate trial reasoning failed to prove robbery beyond reasonable doubt.
* Criminal law – Robbery with violence – Reliance on single eyewitness – Assessment of credibility and burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt.
* Criminal appeals – Appellate re-evaluation of credibility – Limits where trial court provides specific observations of demeanour.
* Criminal procedure – Adequacy of trial judge's reasons for accepting witness testimony.
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22 December 1976 |
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Conviction quashed where prosecution failed to rebut accused's uncontradicted purchase explanation by calling the named seller.
Criminal law – burden of proof – prosecution must prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt – accused not obliged to call third-party seller – failure to call corroborative witness may create reasonable doubt and render conviction unsafe.
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21 December 1976 |
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Convictions quashed where night-time identification, inconsistent accounts and lack of corroboration undermined prosecution case.
Criminal law – robbery with violence – identification evidence – reliability where incident said to occur at night – absence of evidence of lighting – failure of alarm response – uncorroborated single witness evidence – alibi and reasonable doubt – appeal and quashing of conviction.
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18 December 1976 |
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Reported
Inquest — Application to hold an inquest — Application made after trial court’s ruling that death not substantially caused by collision of motor vehicle — Whether application incompetent. |
18 December 1976 |
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Circumstantial evidence that irresistibly indicates guilt can support conviction and a confirmed six‑year sentence for cattle theft.
Criminal law – Circumstantial evidence – Sufficiency to convict where no direct identification or possession – Doctrine of recent possession inapplicable – Sentence uplift justified.
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17 December 1976 |
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Appellate court set aside unjustified absolute discharge for employment and compensation offences and imposed fines.
Criminal procedure — Absolute discharge — Trial court's failure to exercise judicial discretion — Appellate intervention to set aside discharge and impose fines; Employment law — record-keeping and issuance of oral contract records; Workmen's Compensation — requirement to insure against employee liability; Sentencing — appropriate exercise of judicial discretion by magistrates.
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17 December 1976 |
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Ripping of a complainant’s clothes during rape is ordinarily incidental to the assault, not a separate malicious-damage offence.
Criminal law – Sexual offences – Rape conviction may be sustained on complainant’s evidence supported by independent eyewitnesses and exhibits despite PF.3 lacking marks of violence; Malicious damage – damage to clothing during an assault is ordinarily incidental, not a separate offence unless wilful damage is proved; Criminal procedure – defective charge sheet (unspecified subsection) may justify acquittal of personation count.
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16 December 1976 |
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Appellant’s redemption claim failed: land was not clan property and his delay and acquiescence barred relief.
* Land law – clan shamba – definition and when land is considered clan property; effect of family tenure and inheritance.
* Statutory enfranchisement (1968) – conversion of tenant/family interests into independent ownership defeating clan redemption claims.
* Redemption – right to redeem sale of clan land; prerequisites and limitation by evolution of title and laches.
* Conduct of claimant – knowledge of dispute and failure to timely act (laches/bad faith) can defeat equitable claims.
* Purchaser protection – sale witnessed and certified by relatives cannot be upset by a dissenting individual absent timely challenge.
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15 December 1976 |
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15 December 1976 |
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An appellant found to be an innocent carrier had conviction quashed; co-accused's admission and recovered goods upheld conviction.
Criminal law – Theft/stealing – Sufficiency of evidence – Innocent carrier doctrine; Admission and recovery of stolen goods as evidence of guilt; Appeal against conviction and sentence.
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14 December 1976 |
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Appellate interference with a trial court’s assessor-supported credibility findings was unjustified; appeal allowed with costs.
Appeal – standard of appellate review of trial magistrate findings; assessors’ opinions – weight where adopted by trial magistrate; customary law – burden to establish entitlement to disputed items.
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13 December 1976 |
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Guilty plea bars appeal against conviction; two-year sentence for unlawful trophy possession reduced to immediate discharge on mitigation.
Criminal law – guilty plea and section 313 C.P. precluding appeal against conviction; sentencing – mitigation for advanced age and frailty; sentencing powers under section 79(3) Wildlife Conservation Act; unlawful possession of government trophies (lion and duiker skins).
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13 December 1976 |
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Recent possession supported conviction, but evidence warranted substituting theft with receiving stolen goods; sentence unchanged.
Criminal law – theft v. receiving stolen property; doctrine of recent possession; admissibility and corroboration of shopkeepers’ evidence; identification evidence; effect of Minimum Sentences Act on substituted conviction.
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11 December 1976 |
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A divorced woman who remarries before her former husband's death is not entitled to maintenance or inheritance from his estate under Muslim law.
* Succession and maintenance – Muslim law – effect of remarriage by divorced spouse before former husband’s death – disqualification from inheritance and maintenance.
* Evidence – factual finding of remarriage before death – consequences for entitlement to estate funds.
* Appeal – appellate court affirming district court reversal of primary court decision.
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8 December 1976 |
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Circumstantial ledger manipulation and sustained cover-up supported conviction of store assistant; minimum sentence upheld.
* Criminal law – Theft by public servant – Whether circumstantial evidence, ledger manipulation and concealment support conviction. * Evidence – Circumstantial evidence and inference of guilt from pattern of misleading entries and sustained cover-up. * Sentencing – Minimum statutory sentence upheld. * Accessories – Conduct suggestive of accessory after the fact (s.387 Penal Code).
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8 December 1976 |
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The appellant's presence, conduct and claim of ownership in a stolen car established his participation in the theft.
* Criminal law – Theft – Participation in theft – Presence in stolen vehicle plus conduct and claim of ownership as evidence of concerted action and party to offence.
* Evidence – Admissions by accused – Partial support of prosecution case cannot be disowned on appeal.
* Sentencing – Severity of sentence for a first offender – court may uphold term given nature and value of stolen property.
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6 December 1976 |
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Appellate court quashed conviction for robbery with violence due to reasonable doubts from uncorroborated complainant evidence and compatible bystander testimony.
* Criminal law – robbery with violence – adequacy and credibility of complainant’s evidence – failure to tender alleged weapons (torch and club) increases reasonable doubt. * Witness corroboration – bystander evidence compatible with accuseds’ version can undermine prosecution. * Accused conduct (no flight) may be relevant to credibility of robbery accusation. * Appellate intervention warranted where conviction is unsafe.
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3 December 1976 |
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Dangerous-driving conviction set aside due to ambiguous charge particulars; other plea-based convictions upheld.
* Road traffic law – section 42 offences – distinction between reckless driving, excessive speed, and dangerous driving – requirement for clear statement of offence and particulars.
* Criminal procedure – plea of guilty – competency to plead – sufficiency of magistrate's precautions and prosecutor's factual outline.
* Conviction invalidated where statement of offence and particulars are inconsistent, creating ambiguity.
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2 December 1976 |
| November 1976 |
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Accused proved to have killed the victim but was legally insane at the time and thus not guilty of murder.
* Criminal law – murder – proof of killing – confession and circumstantial evidence supporting identity of perpetrator. * Criminal responsibility – insanity – disease of the mind rendering accused incapable of knowing wrongfulness; lack of malice aforethought. * Procedure – detention of accused as criminal lunatic and transmission of certified proceedings to Minister under s.168(1)(2) Criminal Procedure Code.
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30 November 1976 |
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Convictions for forgery-based stealing and uttering quashed where forgery was not proved beyond reasonable doubt.
* Criminal law – Forgery – Proof beyond reasonable doubt – Missing duplicate of document – No sufficient evidence to infer accused caused disappearance; no adverse inference permitted.
* Criminal law – Dependent charges – Stealing and uttering charges failing where foundational forgery not proved.
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29 November 1976 |
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Theft conviction upheld; sentence reduced to immediate release due to youth, first‑offender status and minimal-value stolen goods.
Criminal law – Theft – Conviction upheld where accused caught almost red‑handed and trial court’s credibility findings stand – Sentence review – Reduction appropriate for youth, first offender status, minimal value and prompt recovery of stolen goods – Immediate release ordered.
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29 November 1976 |
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Unexplained failure to call a material civilian witness to a search undermines prosecution and warrants quashing convictions.
Criminal law – Search and seizure – Prosecution must call material witnesses who allegedly witnessed seizures; unexplained non-production of such a civilian witness raises reasonable doubt and may require quashing convictions.
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26 November 1976 |
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Appellant ordered to refund dowry items claimed and proved; appellate court erred by awarding two extra cattle.
* Family law – customary dowry – refund of dowry items where marriage did not proceed or dissolved – relief limited to items claimed and proved.
* Evidence – witness credibility – inconsistent statements across proceedings undermining appellant’s case.
* Civil procedure – appellate relief – appellate court may not award restitution of items not claimed or proved in lower court.
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26 November 1976 |
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A conviction based solely on identification by dress or voice is unsafe and was quashed.
Criminal law - Identification evidence - Conviction based solely on identification - requirement of watertight identification - recognition by dress and voice unreliable - need for corroboration or contemporaneous description to police.
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26 November 1976 |
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25 November 1976 |
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Conviction quashed because witness evidence was contradictory, improbable and the trial court failed to critically assess credibility.
Criminal law – burglary/theft – unsafe convictions – contradictions and improbabilities in witness testimony – requirement for critical assessment of credibility by trial court – appellate intervention and quashing of conviction where evidence is unreliable.
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21 November 1976 |
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Trespass proved; assessors’ damage assessment restored and full damages awarded after magistrate unlawfully reduced the award.
* Tort – Trespass to land – Proof of trespass and damage – Eye‑witness agricultural evidence and damage estimate admissible and credible. * Evidence – Identification – Tending of cattle by appellant's child sufficient circumstantial basis for attributing ownership. * Civil procedure – Assessors – Magistrate may not lawfully overrule majority opinion of assessors in Primary Court. * Damages – Arbitrary reduction of assessed damages may be set aside on review and full assessed amount restored.
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19 November 1976 |
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The applicant failed to prove part-payment; courts accepted the respondent’s evidence and dismissed the appeal.
Civil procedure – burden of proof – allegation of payment to deceased payee – absence of documentary evidence – witness credibility – appellate deference to lower courts’ factual findings.
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19 November 1976 |
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Appellant not entitled to full refund of bride price where his mistreatment caused the marriage breakdown.
* Customary marriage – refund of bride price (lobola) – entitlement to restitution on divorce – effect of spouse’s conduct in causing breakdown; appellate review of factual findings on blame for marital breakdown.
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18 November 1976 |
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Appeal dismissed where appellant had agreed in the Primary Court record to accept cash instead of the bull.
Civil appeal – Second appeal – Agreement recorded in Primary Court – Signature as evidence of consent – Substitution of monetary compensation for specific goods – Appellate court will not undo parties’ recorded agreement.
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16 November 1976 |
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Appeal wrongly admitted; forcible return of a wife is barred by Law of Marriage Act and appeal remitted to district court.
Law of Marriage Act s.140 – forcible return of wife prohibited; matrimonial remedy is divorce, not compulsion; appellate procedure – improper direct admission from Primary Court; remit to district court.
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15 November 1976 |
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Accused proved to have caused death by throttling, but malice aforethought (murder) not established — convicted of manslaughter.
Criminal law – Identification evidence in daylight – Eyewitness reliability; Homicide – Distinguishing murder (malice aforethought) from manslaughter; Section 20(c) Penal Code – whether death in course of attempted rape establishes malice aforethought; Medical evidence – degree of force and inference of intent.
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12 November 1976 |
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Recent possession, identification and circumstantial evidence upheld conviction for storebreaking and stealing; appeal dismissed.
Criminal law – Storebreaking and stealing – Recent possession doctrine – Identification by serial number – Circumstantial evidence – Key opening premises – Allegation of police planting evidence.
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12 November 1976 |
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A Primary Court erred by dissolving the appellant’s marriage without a Conciliatory Board certificate of irreparable breakdown.
Matrimonial law – requirement of Conciliatory Board certificate before dissolution; sufficiency and corroboration of allegations in divorce petitions; procedural irregularity — divorce set aside for lack of required certificate.
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11 November 1976 |
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Appellate court disallowed bride-price refund where cattle died after claimant took possession and Primary Court’s assessor practice was procedurally irregular.
* Customary law – bride price – refund – entitlement where marriage dissolution and fault not proved. * Civil procedure – Primary Court assessors – need for continuity; irregular substitution of assessors invalidates judgment. * Evidence – requirement to prove dissolution and fault to determine refund of bride price. * Appeal – appellate court may uphold district court’s factual finding that claimant bears loss where property died after possession.
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9 November 1976 |
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Courts cannot unilaterally determine customary brideprice; amount must be negotiated and agreed by the parties.
Customary marriage – Brideprice – Courts cannot determine level of brideprice; amount fixed by negotiation and agreement between parties; court role limited to enforcing prior agreement. Civil procedure – Duty of appellate court to correct irregularities and misdirections even if not raised by parties; requirement for recorded evidence in primary court.
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8 November 1976 |
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Accused acquitted because prosecution failed to prove he caused the deceased’s fatal injuries beyond reasonable doubt.
* Criminal law – murder – sufficiency of evidence to prove causal link between accused’s conduct and deceased’s fatal injuries – importance of direct evidence of the fatal blow and reliability of eyewitness accounts given darkness.
* Application of section 278(2) Criminal Procedure Code — assessment of whether prosecution proved guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
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6 November 1976 |
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Material contradictions in eyewitness identification rendered the appellant's conviction unsafe and were quashed.
Criminal law – Identification evidence – Material contradictions in eyewitness testimony on identity – Unsafe conviction – Appellate intervention to quash conviction where evidence points to an acquitted co-accused.
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5 November 1976 |
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The applicant failed to prove entrustment of cattle; trial courts’ credibility findings were upheld and appeal dismissed.
Civil procedure – appeal – evaluation of credibility – appellate court will not interfere with primary court's factual findings where evidence is balanced and trial court gave reasons; burden to prove entrustment of property requires corroboration or written acknowledgement.
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5 November 1976 |
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Appeal dismissed on liability; award reduced for arithmetic error and appellant ordered to pay respondents' costs.
* Civil liability – False accusation to police – Damages for wrongful seizure of tools. * Evidence – Ownership claim and alleged mental incapacity of owner – requirement of supporting evidence. * Civil procedure – Appellate correction of arithmetic error in quantum of damages.
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4 November 1976 |
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Liability for adultery hinges on the alleged adulterer’s honest belief the woman was unmarried, not merely refunded bride price.
* Customary marriage – bride price – refund does not by itself dissolve marriage; * Adultery claims – liability depends on alleged adulterer’s honest belief regarding marital status; * Evidence – assurance by parents and refund of bride price relevant to bona fide belief.
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2 November 1976 |
| October 1976 |
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A conviction for receiving requires proof the respondent knew or reasonably believed the property was stolen.
* Criminal law – Theft by public servant – Eyewitness identification supporting conviction. * Criminal law – Receiving stolen property – Requirement of knowledge or reasonable belief that property was stolen. * Evidence – Evaluation of conflicting witness accounts and significance of delay in reporting possession.
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30 October 1976 |
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Attempted robbery conviction and seven-year sentence upheld; obstruction conviction set aside for lack of evidence.
Criminal law – Attempted robbery (s.287 Penal Code) – credibility of prosecution witnesses and factual sufficiency to establish attempt; Criminal law – Obstruction of a police officer (s.243(b) Penal Code) – mere flight not proof of wilful obstruction; Sentencing – minimum statutory sentence upheld where appropriate.
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30 October 1976 |
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Court granted divorce despite absence of Reconciliation Board certificate where one party obstructed reconciliation and marriage had collapsed.
* Family law – Divorce – irretrievable breakdown – applicability of Marriage Act 1971 (s.107) to Muslim marriages – effect of party’s wilful failure to attend Reconciliation Board and absence of Board certificate; court may grant divorce where reconciliation is frustrated.
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30 October 1976 |
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Whether credible identification and possession of stolen goods sustain conviction and mandatory five-year sentence under the Minimum Sentences Act.
* Criminal law – Theft – Identification of stolen goods by maker/tailor – client register and labels as corroboration; possession as evidence of theft.
* Criminal procedure – Appeal – sufficiency of evidence and credibility of denials.
* Sentencing – Minimum Sentences Act 1972 – statutory minimum applied where value exceeds threshold.
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30 October 1976 |