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High Court of Tanzania

This is the second level in the Judiciary justice delivery hierarchy. It has both appellate and original powers on civil and criminal matters. It also hears appeals from the Courts of Resident Magistrate, the District Courts, and the District Land and Housing Tribunals in exercise of their original, appellate and/or revisional jurisdiction. The High Court is divided into Zones and specialized Divisions.

Physical address

24 Kivukoni Road, P O Box: S.L.P. 9004

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https://jmap.judiciary.go.tz/jmap/jmap-hc

5 judgments

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5 judgments

Citation	Judgment date
December 1973
Republic vs Sebastian Milunga (Criminal Sessions Case No 73 of 1973) [1973] TZHC 392 (12 December 1973) Insufficient evidence of specific intent to kill warrants acquittal for attempted murder; accused should not be compelled to incriminate himself. * Criminal law – Attempted murder – section 211(1) Penal Code – requirement to prove positive/unlawful intention to cause death. * Evidence – Circumstantial and suspicious conduct insufficient without material proof of intent. * Criminal procedure – section 278(1) CrPC – court may discharge where prosecution has no evidence. * Fair trial principle – accused should not be called to provide inculpatory evidence against himself.	12 December 1973
Republic vs Julius s/o Nsyukwe (Criminal Sessions Case No. 97 of 1973; E.A.C.A. Criminal Appeal) [1973] TZHC 375 (8 December 1973) Accused's provocation and drunkenness defences rejected; multiple wounds showed intent, convicted of murder and sentenced to death. * Criminal law – murder – intention to kill or cause grievous bodily harm – multiple stab wounds as evidence of intent. * Criminal law – defences – provocation, drunkenness and accident – when they fail to negate mens rea. * Evidence – credibility of accused's judicial statements – recent fabrication and assessors' findings. * Procedure – conviction under section 196 Penal Code; reference to section 14(2) on intoxication.	8 December 1973
October 1973
Republic vs Juma s/o Kulambalimbali and Another (Criminal Sessions Case No. 175 of 1972) [1973] TZHC 382 (20 October 1973) An honest belief in witchcraft does not legally excuse murder; deliberate killing attracts mandatory death sentence. * Criminal law – murder – confession corroborated by independent evidence – conviction. * Defence of honest belief in witchcraft – metaphysical belief does not excuse or mitigate in law absent grave, sudden provocation. * Provocation – requires grave and sudden act causing heat of passion; fear of future supernatural harm insufficient. * Sentence – mandatory death sentence for murder despite mitigating personal factors.	20 October 1973
April 1973
Republic vs Yohane s/o Sebetu (Criminal Sessions Case No. 69 of 1972) [1973] TZHC 158 (3 April 1973) Provocation reduced the accused’s killing to manslaughter; intoxication did not negate criminal liability. Criminal law – Homicide – Murder v. manslaughter – Provocation as ground for reduction of offence; intoxication not equivalent to temporary insanity; trial judge may depart from assessors’ unanimous opinion after proper consideration; evidentiary weight of extra-judicial statements.	3 April 1973
January 1973
Republic vs Landani Jonasi (Criminal Sessions Case No 55 of 1973) [1973] TZHC 269 (1 January 1973) Whether a murder conviction can rest on a single hostile-spouse eyewitness alongside medical evidence of fatal injuries. Criminal law – Murder (s.196 Penal Code); Fatal injuries and cause of death (post-mortem evidence); Identification evidence – reliance on single eyewitness; Credibility issues where eyewitness is estranged spouse; Sufficiency of evidence to prove identity beyond reasonable doubt.	1 January 1973

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