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Citation
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Judgment date
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| February 1996 |
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Appellant failed to prove sole ownership; joint tenancy and purchaser’s title upheld and appeal dismissed.
* Land law – Dispute over ownership of surveyed plot – joint occupancy since 1970s – survey and grant of joint tenancy (1991).
* Transfer/purchase – Validity of purchaser’s title from deceased co-occupant – evidence supporting lawful purchase.
* Civil appeal – Appellate review of findings of fact and exercise of discretion by trial court – no error found.
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28 February 1996 |
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Appellate court upholds robbery and resisting-arrest convictions, finding identification and credibility findings lawful.
Criminal law – Robbery with violence; identification evidence and credibility assessment; alleged mistaken identity arising from multiple arrest attempts; resisting arrest with a weapon; appellate review of magistrate’s findings on credibility.
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27 February 1996 |
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Whether nighttime eyewitness identification and recent-possession inferences sufficed to support convictions given poor visibility and shock.
* Criminal law – Visual identification – Identification made at night during an ambush – Reliability and adequacy of eyewitness identification evidence.
* Criminal law – Circumstantial evidence – Recent possession doctrine – Requirements before inferring guilt from proximity or alleged possession of stolen property.
* Evidence – Effect of shock, poor lighting and delay on witness reliability – Prosecutor’s concession of insufficient identification evidence.
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26 February 1996 |
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Appellants’ convictions for robbery quashed where night-time identification was unreliable and evidence insufficient.
* Criminal law – Robbery with violence – Identification evidence – Night-time offence, faces covered and sleeping victims – Insufficiency of identification to sustain conviction. * Criminal law – Circumstantial evidence – Presence near scene and possession of items in a house insufficient without reliable link to crime. * Appeal – Convictions quashed where identification and evidence are not watertight.
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26 February 1996 |
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Appeal allowed: conviction quashed and sentence set aside for procedural irregularity and excessive custodial sentence.
Criminal procedure – Conviction entered where record fails to show accused was called to answer or plea recorded – Proceedings irregular; conviction quashed. Sentencing – custodial sentence imposed mechanically without considering mitigating factors or non‑custodial alternatives – sentence excessive. Judicial duty – magistrates must observe legal procedure and consider alternatives, mindful of prison overcrowding.
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23 February 1996 |
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Applicant's recent possession of stolen medicated soap supported conviction; five-year minimum sentence affirmed.
Criminal law – store-breaking and stealing – evidence of break-in and discovery of stolen goods; doctrine of recent possession; credibility of accused's inconsistent explanations; sentence – value threshold and mandatory minimum; judicial notice of public institution.
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20 February 1996 |
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Appellate court quashed convictions based on weak identification and potentially planted exhibits, ordering release of the accused.
Criminal law – robbery with violence – identification evidence – recent possession and recovery of exhibits – possibility of planted evidence – unsafe convictions quashed on appeal and revision.
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19 February 1996 |
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The appellant’s conviction was quashed because identification and exhibit evidence against him were unreliable and possibly planted.
Criminal law – robbery with violence – sufficiency and reliability of identification evidence; identification and admissibility of exhibits; possibility of planted evidence; recent possession doctrine; appeal and revisional power to quash unsafe convictions.
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19 February 1996 |
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Appeal allowed on procedural ground: restoration under Reg.6(2) was not properly made, though tenant-protection provision did not apply.
* Rent law – Rent Restriction Act s.25(1)(i) – requirement of reasonable alternative accommodation – applicability depends on tenant status.
* Procedural law – Regional Housing Tribunal Regulations 1990 Reg.6(1),(2) – restoration of applications dismissed for non-appearance – strict compliance required.
* Administrative justice – failure to serve or hear chamber (restoration) application – not necessarily curable if statutory procedure not followed.
* Evidence – status of occupant (owner vs tenant) determinative for statutory protections.
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16 February 1996 |
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Convictions based on improperly produced documents and un-demonstrated handwriting expert evidence were quashed and sentences set aside.
* Criminal law – forgery, uttering and theft – reliance on handwriting expert evidence – necessity of demonstration and proper chain of custody for specimens and disputed documents.
* Evidence – experts' reports – expert must demonstrate similarities/dissimilarities by reference to actual documents; report alone insufficient.
* Criminal procedure – tendering of exhibits – documents must be produced and properly identified; absence of core exhibit invalidates related counts.
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16 February 1996 |
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Insufficient evidence of cattle theft, conviction for possession of suspected stolen property upheld; sentence reduced to two years.
Criminal law – Cattle theft vs possession of suspected stolen property (s.312 Penal Code); identification evidence; sufficiency of proof for theft; unlawful possession inference; improper application of minimum sentences regime in sentencing.
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15 February 1996 |
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Section 148(5)(c) as to robbery/armed robbery was overly broad and unconstitutional; offending words struck out and bail to be reconsidered.
Criminal procedure — Bail — Section 148(5) Criminal Procedure Act 1985 (paragraph re robbery/armed robbery) — Overly broad statutory wording violates constitutional guarantees of personal liberty and presumption of innocence — offending words struck out and bail to be reconsidered.
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15 February 1996 |
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Court read down section 148(5) as overbroad: bail cannot be denied on bare allegations; prosecution must adduce material evidence.
Criminal procedure — Bail — Section 148(5) Criminal Procedure Act — Overbroad statutory denial of bail — Presumption of innocence and personal liberty — Need for prosecution to adduce material evidence/affidavits before refusing bail — Substituted charge (armed robbery) does not automatically void prior bail; lower court must re-examine bail.
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15 February 1996 |
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A transferor without title cannot pass ownership; purchaser’s remedy is against the transferor, appeal dismissed.
Property law – transfer of land – nemo dat quod non habet – transferor without title cannot pass valid title; innocent purchaser’s remedy is against transferor, not true owner; concurrent findings of lower courts affirmed.
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13 February 1996 |
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Conviction quashed for consistency with a co-accused’s prior appellate acquittal despite reliable identification and no denial of defence witnesses.
Criminal law – robbery with violence; right to call defence witnesses – opportunity versus waiver; identification evidence – visual ID in bright moonlight and prior acquaintance; appellate consistency – effect of co-accused’s prior acquittal on related convictions.
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13 February 1996 |
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Reported
Company law - Power of company to institute legal proceedings - Company declared a specified public corporation under Public Corporations (Amendment) Act 16 of 1993 - Such company has no locus standi to institute proceedings on its own |
13 February 1996 |
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A specified public corporation cannot unilaterally institute interim proceedings; PSRC involvement or authority is required.
Public corporations — Specified public corporation status — Effect on locus to sue — Need for involvement or authority of Presidential Parastatal Sector Reform Commission (PSRC); Receivership — Ability to challenge appointment pending suit; Competence of interlocutory applications by corporations under statutory supervision.
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13 February 1996 |
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Interlocutory injunction refused; no enforceable sale existed as offer and part payment lacked completion and required statutory consent.
Civil procedure – interlocutory injunction – requirements of a serious triable issue, irreparable injury, and balance of convenience; Contract – formation (offer and acceptance) – part payment without completion does not constitute an enforceable sale; Land/administrative law – necessity of statutory consent/approval and compliance with board resolutions for disposal of property.
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12 February 1996 |
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Appeal dismissed: conviction for arson upheld; sentence increased to four years with two years suspended conditional on payment of Shs.138,000 and conduct.
* Criminal law – Arson – Eyewitness identification – Credibility of direct evidence supporting conviction.
* Criminal procedure – Appeal against conviction – Appeal dismissed where trial evidence credible.
* Sentencing – Variation on appeal – enhancement of sentence with part suspended on condition of compensation payment and conduct requirements.
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9 February 1996 |
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Appeal dismissed; eyewitness arson evidence sustained conviction, sentence increased and compensation plus prohibition ordered.
* Criminal law – Arson – Eyewitness identification – Credibility of PW2 who saw use of kerosene and match; conviction upheld.
* Appeal – Withdrawal and merits – Late withdrawal and dismissal as unmeritorious.
* Sentencing – Enhancement of term for aggravating motive; suspension of part of sentence on health grounds.
* Remedies – Compensation for property loss and prohibitory order against re‑cultivating former leased farm.
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9 February 1996 |
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Affidavits must state matters within the deponent’s knowledge or disclose sources; undisclosed‑source counter‑affidavit was struck out.
Civil procedure – affidavits and verification – Order 19 (r.3) Civil Procedure Code – affidavits must be confined to matters within deponent’s knowledge or disclose sources when based on documents or information – failure to disclose sources renders affidavit improperly verified and inadmissible – amendment not permitted where inadequate to cure defect.
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9 February 1996 |
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5 February 1996 |
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Identification by voice in darkness by drinking witnesses was unsafe; acquittal upheld due to reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – Identification evidence – Recognition by voice and by sight in darkness – Witnesses under influence of alcohol – Necessity of identification safeguards (identification parade) – Burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt – Acquittal upheld where identification unsafe.
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5 February 1996 |
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Convictions based on an untendered audit report and without forensic proof are unsafe and were quashed.
Criminal law – conviction based on audit report not tendered in evidence – insufficiency of audit to prove criminal responsibility; forgery and theft – requirement of proof beyond reasonable doubt; chain of custody and handwriting/forensic evidence – necessity to link alleged forgeries to accused; possession/neglect insufficient to convict.
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5 February 1996 |
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Convictions quashed where evidence was unreliable and prosecution failed to prove alleged false gold; burden improperly shifted.
Criminal law – Attempt to obtain money by false pretences – Proof beyond reasonable doubt – Credibility of complainant – Need for expert evidence to establish alleged false gold – Improper burden shifting – Appeal and quashing of convictions.
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2 February 1996 |
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Appellant failed to prove title; court upheld respondents' long occupation and dismissed the appeal with costs.
Land law – ownership dispute – burden of proof on balance of probabilities; long uninterrupted occupation and development as basis for rights; assessment of witness credibility; appellate restraint in disturbing trial court findings of fact.
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2 February 1996 |
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Appellant failed to prove title; respondents' long occupation and development justified dismissal of the appeal.
Land law; proof of title — oral evidence and credibility; long uninterrupted occupation and development as protection against dispossession; standard of proof on balance of probabilities; appellate deference to trial court’s factual findings.
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2 February 1996 |