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Citation
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Judgment date
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| December 1987 |
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Conviction for arson based on mere suspicious circumstances was insufficient; conviction quashed and sentence set aside.
Criminal law – arson – sufficiency of circumstantial evidence – identity of perpetrator – suspicion is insufficient for conviction; prosecution must prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
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31 December 1987 |
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Plea of guilty invalid where charges not properly explained to a hard-of-hearing accused and particulars were insufficient; convictions quashed.
* Criminal procedure – plea of guilty – duty of magistrate to ensure accused understands charges, especially if hard of hearing.
* Criminal pleading – sufficiency of particulars – facts at plea must disclose elements of housebreaking and stealing, not merely repeat charge sheet.
* Conviction on inadequate particulars and unclear plea – quashing of conviction and order for retrial.
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31 December 1987 |
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Conviction quashed where charge failed to allege section 25 detention and evidence did not show possession while on a journey.
Criminal law – charge must allege statutory basis for detention – section 25 Criminal Procedure Act – possession while conveying during a journey – distinction between seizures under a search warrant and powers under section 25 – defective indictment vitiates conviction.
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31 December 1987 |
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DPP’s s.148(4) certificate permits temporary custody but court must set a fixed period, after which accused are entitled to conditional bail.
* Criminal procedure — Bail pending trial — Allegations of interference with investigations and flight risk must be supported by evidence. * Criminal procedure — Effect of DPP’s certificate under s.148(4) Criminal Procedure Act — Court must fix a definite custody period after which accused should be released on bail. * Presumption of innocence — Bail should not be withheld maliciously or as punishment.
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31 December 1987 |
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Injunction denied: prior eviction concerned only the office premises; occupation of adjacent open space not prohibited by that decree.
Tenancy law – scope of judgment and execution – eviction decree limited to specified premises; injunction and nuisance – separate action required to challenge occupation of adjacent open space; business licences – evidence of lawful operations in port area.
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30 December 1987 |
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Reported
Criminal Law - Evidence - Probative value ofevidence based solely on identification - Identification by single witness.
Criminal Law - Sentencing - Assessment of sentence - Factors to be considered. |
23 December 1987 |
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23 December 1987 |
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23 December 1987 |
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Reported
Single-witness identification corroborated by arrest and possession justified conviction; two-year sentences reduced as excessive.
* Criminal law – visual identification – single-witness identification must be watertight and corroborated; corroborative facts can render identification safe.
* Criminal law – possession of instruments with intent to commit a felony – presence at odd hour, flight/hiding on alarm and possession of weapons justify inference of intent.
* Sentencing – prevalence of an offence is a factor but not the predominant one; youth and first-offender status may justify reduced sentence.
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23 December 1987 |
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Procedural irregularity in arraignment does not invalidate conviction where identification and other evidence overwhelmingly establish guilt.
* Criminal law – identification evidence – immediate recognition by a village watchman by moonlight and prior acquaintance – reliability of identification. * Criminal procedure – arraignment when a new magistrate or court takes over a trial – procedural irregularity does not vitiate conviction absent failure of justice (s.388 CPA). * Right to recall witnesses – allegation of denial must be assessed in context of overall sufficiency of evidence.
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22 December 1987 |
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Convictions for robbery upheld despite arraignment omission because identification and overall evidence excluded reasonable doubt.
* Criminal law – robbery with violence – identification evidence – familiarity, moonlight, immediate identification and arrest as corroborating factors.
* Criminal procedure – change of presiding magistrate – requirement to arraign accused and take plea when assuming trial jurisdiction.
* Statutory discretion under s.388 Criminal Procedure Act 1985 – procedural irregularity does not warrant quashing conviction unless it occasioned a failure of justice.
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22 December 1987 |
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Appellate court restored trial court’s award, holding the land claim not time‑barred and respondent only an invitee.
* Limitation law — recovery of land — 12‑year limitation and effect of rules taking effect 29/5/1964. * Evidence and title — weight of findings on possession and invitee status. * Appellate review — whether lapse of time alone justifies reversing trial court’s factual findings.
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19 December 1987 |
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Appeal dismissed: confession voluntary, identification reliable and pushing while snatching money satisfied force element for robbery.
* Criminal law – robbery with violence – element of force – pushing victim while snatching money suffices as use of force. * Criminal procedure – admissibility of extra-judicial statement/confession – voluntariness. * Evidence – identification in daylight and recovery of stolen property as supporting conviction. * Alibi – rejection where defence witness undermines alibi account.
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18 December 1987 |
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Driving the vehicle containing stolen goods shortly after a robbery supported conviction; hijack defence rejected.
Criminal law – robbery with violence – identification of vehicle and recovery of stolen property as evidence of participation; credibility assessment of hijack defence; appellate review of sentence reasonableness.
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18 December 1987 |
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Plaintiff awarded refund with interest and costs after seller accepted payment but failed to restore or refund following fire.
Sale of immovable property – purchase money paid – property destroyed by fire – seller's failure to renovate or refund – defective conveyance and absence of Land Officer consent – ex parte proceedings under Order IX r.6(1)(a)(i) – judgment for repayment with interest and costs.
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16 December 1987 |
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Insufficient proof of malice aforethought; accused convicted of manslaughter, not murder, and sentenced to five years.
* Criminal law - murder v. manslaughter – requirement of malice aforethought; proof of intent to kill.
* Evidential assessment – conflicting assessor views and circumstantial evidence (pursuit, scene of stabbing).
* Defence of accidental killing/self-defence – where death occurs in a mutual fight, accidental killing may negate malice aforethought.
* Sentence – consideration of custody already served.
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16 December 1987 |
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Single credible eye‑witness testimony supported conviction for intentional murder; accused sentenced to death.
Criminal law – Murder – Identification and single eye‑witness evidence – Reliability and sufficiency for conviction; Defence of accident rejected; Mental capacity (sound mind) confirmed.
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16 December 1987 |
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Conviction quashed where trial judgment lacked points of determination, reasons and proper sentencing findings.
* Criminal procedure — Judgment requirements — section 312(1) — points of determination and reasons required.
* Evidence — Trial judge’s duty to evaluate evidence; appellate limitation on re‑assessing credibility from record.
* Sentencing — Minimum Sentence Act — prosecution’s duty to make findings (specified authority/value) before imposing statutory sentence.
* Procedural irregularity — defective judgment warrants quashing conviction and setting aside sentence.
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16 December 1987 |
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Concurrent credibility findings in a land dispute upheld; unsubstantiated bias claim fails and appeal dismissed with costs.
* Civil procedure – Appeal – Concurrent findings of fact and credibility – Appellate court will not disturb trial and first appellate courts’ credibility findings absent demonstrable error.
* Evidence – Land dispute – Importance of trial court site visit and survey markers; appellate site visit not required if trial record is clear.
* Allegation of bias – Must be raised and substantiated; mere similarity of surname is insufficient to impeach impartiality.
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15 December 1987 |
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Reported
A father may claim customary compensation when a man makes his unmarried daughter pregnant; education costs are not recoverable.
* Customary law – Compensation – Paragraph 190, First Schedule, Law of Persons – Father's entitlement where dependent daughter under 21 made pregnant.
* Jurisdiction – Primary Courts have jurisdiction over civil claims where customary law is applicable (Magistrate's Courts Act s.18(1)(i)).
* Damages – Educational expenses incurred by a parent are not recoverable as damages when a daughter’s schooling is terminated by pregnancy.
* Burden of proof – Under customary rule (para.193) the man named must prove he did not have carnal knowledge; failure to do so supports liability.
* Appeal – Appellate court should not disturb Primary Court’s factual finding on paternity if open on evidence.
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15 December 1987 |
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Primary courts can award customary compensation to a father where a man impregnates his dependent daughter.
* Customary law – Declaration of Customary Law GN No. 279/1963 – Paragraphs 183 and 190 – parental right to compensation where dependent daughter is impregnated; burden of proof on alleged father. * Jurisdiction – Magistrates' Courts Act – Primary Court jurisdiction over civil proceedings governed by customary law. * Recovery of education expenses – no cause of action for parent to recover schooling costs lost due to pregnancy.
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15 December 1987 |
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A trial court may not award more than the claimed sum without formal amendment; award reduced to the claimed balance.
Civil appeal — Primary Court awarding a larger sum than claimed — unexplained alteration of plaint — requirement of formal amendment; Credibility of witnesses related to a party; Determination of unpaid balance on sale of chattel.
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15 December 1987 |
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A fresh suit challenging a 1979 attachment was held res judicata and time‑barred under the three‑year limitation.
* Civil procedure – res judicata – fresh suit on same subject matter after prior proceedings concerning attachment barred as res judicata.
* Limitation law – wrongful attachment is a tort with a three‑year limitation period under the Law of Limitation Act.
* Primary Courts procedure – objection to attachment under Rule 70 is the appropriate remedy for third‑party claims to attached property.
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15 December 1987 |
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Reported
Civil Practice and Procedure - Jurisdiction - Jurisdiction - Customary tort - Whether justiciable in Primary Courts - S.18(l)(i) of Magistrates Court Act, 1984 - Para 190, Part IV, First Schedule, Law of Persons, G.N. 279/1963.
Civil Practice and Procedure - Compensation - Whether expenses foreducating a daughter who is made pregnant are recoverable.
Evidence - Pregnancy - Burden of proof that daughter not made pregnant by the accused - Para 183 of Law ofPersons GN 279/ 1963. |
15 December 1987 |
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15 December 1987 |
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Substituting a new charge without fresh evidence or recalling witnesses rendered the trial unfair and convictions were quashed.
Criminal procedure – substitution of charge mid-trial; right to fair trial and right to require recall of witnesses; conviction on substituted charge must be supported by appropriate evidence; failure of justice – quashing of proceedings and retrial under s.366(1) Criminal Procedure Act 1985.
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14 December 1987 |
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Reported
Criminal Practice and Procedure - Criminal Procedure Code replaced by Criminal Procedure Act, 1985 - Effect on form of laying a treason charge.
Criminal Practice and Procedure - Section 12 of the Evidence Act, 1967 — Evidence to be adduced to bring the Section into operation when treasonable conspiracy alleged.
Criminal Practice and Procedure - Whether a trial judge’s summing up of the case to assessors is mandatory or discretionary - Section 283(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code (now Section 298(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1985).
Criminal Practice and Procedure - Trial judge’s summing up of the case to assessors - Extent ofparticularity required.
Criminal Practice and Procedure - Assessors’ opinions - Duty of trial judge to take such opinions before givingjudgment - Section 248 of the Criminal Procedure Code (now Section 265 of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1985).
Evidence - Extra-judicial statements - Formalities requiredfor confessions - Magistrates’ Courts Act, 1963 - Section 56(2) - Empowers Chief Justice to issue instructions - Such Chief Justice’s
Instructions applying to magistrates also - Whether magistrates’ failure, to comply fully with Chief Justice’s Instructions rendering extra-judicial statements inadmissible.
Evidence - Retracted confession - Value and weight to be attached to retracted uncorroborated confessions.
Evidence - Retracted confession - Whether capable of corroborating other evidence against the confessor.
Criminal Practice and Procedure - Trial within the trial- Scope of -Findings on the general character of an accusedfalling within the scope ofthe main trial- Whether suchfindings expressed after trial within the trial having the effect of vitiating a fair trial.
Evidence - Incriminating statements made at trial within the trial-Admissibility at the main trial - Such statements can be used against the maker at the main trial.
Criminal Law - Section 39(2) (a) of the Penal Code - Charge of treason - What constitutes.
Criminal Practice and Procedure - Sentencing - Interference with a trial court's sentencing on appeal - Principles applicable. |
14 December 1987 |
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Applicant’s claim for full bridewealth refund denied where he was found at fault for the marriage breakdown; appeal dismissed.
Family law — Bridewealth restitution on dissolution of marriage — Effect of spouse’s fault on quantum of refund — Appellate review of factual findings and discretionary reduction of bridewealth restitution.
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14 December 1987 |
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A claim to recover bridewealth filed 26 years after divorce is time-barred absent satisfactory explanation.
* Civil procedure – limitation of actions – claim to recover bridewealth instituted 26 years after divorce – absence of satisfactory explanation renders claim time-barred.
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14 December 1987 |
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Conviction quashed where prosecution failed to exclude reasonable possibility that someone with a duplicate key stole the money.
Criminal law – Theft by servant – proof beyond reasonable doubt – duplicate key to strongroom – prosecution must establish whereabouts/custody of duplicate key – doubt resolved in favour of accused; Minimum Sentences Act – statutory minimum for high-value theft.
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14 December 1987 |
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14 December 1987 |
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Reliable visual identification upheld despite grudges; appeals against robbery convictions dismissed.
* Evidence — Visual/identification evidence — Reliability and sufficiency to support conviction; factors: lighting, prior acquaintance, prompt identification, detailed description.
* Criminal law — Robbery with violence — proof beyond reasonable doubt.
* Evidence — Effect of prior grudges or bad relations on credibility of identification.
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12 December 1987 |
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Appellate court affirmed assault convictions and 18‑month sentences where prosecution witnesses were credible and defence evidence unreliable.
Criminal law – Assault causing actual bodily harm – Credibility of prosecution and defence witnesses; corroboration by independent eyewitnesses; motive (prior conviction) as supporting inference of participation; appellate review of factual findings and sentence.
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12 December 1987 |
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A Primary Court record lacking recorded assessors' opinions is not a judgment and appeals founded on it are nullified.
* Criminal/Civil procedure – Primary Courts – requirement to obtain and record assessors' opinions – effect of failing to record assessors' views on validity of judgment. * Appeal – appealability – an appeal cannot properly lie from a non-judgment. * Magistrates' Courts Act 1984 s.7(2) – assessors' role and magistrate's casting vote.
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12 December 1987 |
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Appellant failed to prove enticement or authenticate letters; appeal dismissed with costs.
Civil law – claim for enticement/adultery – burden of proof – authenticity and provenance of documentary evidence – relevance of historical testimony – appellate review of factual findings.
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12 December 1987 |
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A 13‑year‑old who struck and killed another with a brick was found guilty but conditionally discharged due to youth.
Criminal law – Manslaughter – causation by assault; Juvenile criminal responsibility – doli incapax and capacity to know wrong; Evidence – contemporaneous conduct (flight) as proof of awareness; Sentencing/disposal – conditional discharge under s.326(1)(b) for young first offender.
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11 December 1987 |
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Appellants' convictions quashed due to unreliable eyewitness testimony and insufficient possession evidence.
Criminal law – conviction unsafe where reliant on a single inconsistent eyewitness; possession evidence insufficient to prove theft of larger quantity; appellate review — quashing convictions and vacating compensation.
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11 December 1987 |
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A Resident Magistrate lacked jurisdiction to revise a Primary Court decision; the illegal revisional order was quashed.
Jurisdiction – limits of Resident Magistrate's Court – No revisional or appellate jurisdiction over Primary Courts; proper revision lies in District Court. Civil procedure – illegal revision – revisional order made without jurisdiction is nullity. Service – attempted service on deceased's representative; refusal to accept process does not mean party judged unheard.
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11 December 1987 |
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Cohabitation and occasional contributions do not establish joint ownership; documentary and corroborating evidence determine title.
Primary courts – jurisdiction in customary law matters; Land Registration Ordinance – registered land excluded; Cohabitation – no presumption of marriage; Contributions – gratuitous assistance does not create partnership or joint ownership; Evidence – documentary and corroborative witness evidence decisive.
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10 December 1987 |
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Cohabitation does not create marriage or joint property; written sale agreement and corroborating evidence determine ownership.
Property — Ownership dispute over plot and house — Primary Court jurisdiction where customary law applies and land not registered — Cohabitation does not create presumption of marriage or partnership — Written sale agreement and corroborating witness evidence determine ownership — Occasional financial assistance insufficient to create joint proprietary interest.
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10 December 1987 |
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Divorce petition for cruelty dismissed for lack of proof; three-year separation order set aside, parties remain married.
Family law – Divorce on grounds of cruelty – Burden of proof and requirement for evidence/witnesses; Appellate review of separation orders; Power and appropriateness of ordering fixed-term separation for reconciliation.
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10 December 1987 |
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Signed written admission of liability for cattle trespass upheld; appeal dismissed with costs.
Tort — cattle trespass — written admission — evidentiary weight of signed agreement — appellate review of factual findings.
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8 December 1987 |
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Property belonging to a deceased child is not a matrimonial asset divisible under section 114 in divorce proceedings.
* Family law – Division of matrimonial assets – Section 114 Law of Marriage Act – scope limited to assets acquired by parties during marriage; property of a third party (deceased child) not divisible in divorce proceedings; inheritance/succession claims distinct from matrimonial property disputes.
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8 December 1987 |
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Court rejected bias and self‑defence claims, upheld conviction, and corrected the primary court’s ultra vires sentence and compensation.
Criminal law – assault causing actual bodily harm; self‑defence; reasonable‑apprehension test for judicial bias; limits on primary court sentencing and compensation; substitution of ultra vires sentence.
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7 December 1987 |
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Appeal dismissed where claimant failed to prove ownership, alleged theft by respondents, or malicious prosecution.
* Civil appeal – disputed ownership of land produce – proof required for recovery of harvested crops; * Claims for conversion/damages – need for specific credible evidence of quantity and value; * Malicious prosecution – absence of malice where complainant genuinely believed theft occurred and conviction was rendered; * Evidence – assessment of credibility and insufficiency of appellant's proof.
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5 December 1987 |
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Owner may repossess land but must pay tenant at will compensation for permanent improvements.
Land law – tenancy at will – gratuitous permission to cultivate – occupant has no proprietary estate but is entitled to compensation for improvements (emblements/permanent crops) – appellate restraint in disturbing factual compensation awards.
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4 December 1987 |
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Primary Court proceedings conducted with only one assessor are void for want of jurisdiction; appeal allowed and orders quashed.
* Civil procedure – Magistrates' Courts/Primary Courts – composition – requirement that Primary Court sit with not less than two assessors under Magistrates' Courts Act 1984 s.7(1) – sitting with one assessor renders proceedings void for want of jurisdiction. * Jurisdictional irregularity not cured by general curing provisions where it goes to the root of the matter. * Appeal allowed where lower courts failed to recognise assessor-composition defect.
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3 December 1987 |
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Forcible village occupation and destruction of the appellant's crops warrants compensation and reinstatement of the Primary Court award.
Property and compensation — unlawful occupation of private land by village government — destruction of crops — entitlement to compensation and assessment of quantum; appellate review reinstating Primary Court award.
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3 December 1987 |
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Convictions for assisting a prison escape quashed where circumstantial evidence failed to prove guilty knowledge beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – Aiding escape – identification evidence – circumstantial evidence – guilty knowledge must be established beyond reasonable doubt; credible witness evidence does not alone suffice where inferences of guilt are not irresistible.
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2 December 1987 |
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Appellate court refuses to overturn concurrent factual findings on ownership of cattle seized in execution; appeal dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure — Objection proceedings — Execution levy and seizure of cattle — Ownership dispute — Concurrent findings of fact by trial and District Courts — Appellate interference limited absent demonstrable error.
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2 December 1987 |