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Citation
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Judgment date
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| December 1991 |
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Identification of a recovered pressure lamp and surrounding circumstances firmly established possession of stolen property; appeal dismissed.
* Criminal law – Identification of property – Complainant identification of a pressure lamp linked to repair workshop sufficient to connect lamp to theft. * Criminal law – Possession of stolen property – Items recovered in appellant’s house held to be stolen where identification and circumstances are cogent. * Appeal – Insufficiency of appellant’s explanations to raise reasonable doubt; appeal dismissed.
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3 December 1991 |
| November 1991 |
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Seizures were unlawful where police failed mandatory s.38 formalities and seized property not shown to be connected to offences.
Criminal Procedure Act – search and seizure – mandatory compliance with s.38(2) and (3) (reporting to magistrate; receipt for seizure) – failure renders seizure irregular and of no legal effect; seizure limited to property connected with offence (s.39); court’s power to order release under s.357.
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29 November 1991 |
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29 November 1991 |
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Appellate court enhanced compensation for grievous harm due to serious injury and unchallenged monetary loss, leaving imprisonment unchanged.
Criminal law – causing grievous harm – adequacy of sentence – appellate enhancement of compensation where trial court failed to consider serious injuries and unchallenged monetary loss – effect of accused’s absence on appellate adjustment of custodial sentence.
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28 November 1991 |
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Delay in filing excused, but leave to appeal refused because the proposed appeal lacked prospects of success due to strong evidence.
* Criminal procedure – leave to appeal out of time – excusable delay due to prisoner transfer – assessment of prospects of success on proposed appeal; strong identification and possession evidence may justify refusal of leave.
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27 November 1991 |
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Dying declaration and corroborative evidence proved assault but not malice aforethought, conviction reduced to manslaughter.
Criminal law – Homicide: admissibility and weight of dying declaration and corroboration; distinguishing murder (malice aforethought) from manslaughter where intoxication, motive and circumstances negate specific intent.
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27 November 1991 |
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Applicant's conviction for stealing by a public servant upheld due to exclusive access evidence and inconsistent explanations.
* Criminal law – stealing by a public servant – sufficiency of evidence to prove accused’s guilt – access to secure strong room and custody of cash.
* Evidence – credibility findings of trial court – appellate review and deference to trial magistrate’s assessments.
* Defence – inconsistent statements and shifting explanations as undermining defence credibility.
* Corroboration – when alleged interest of prosecution witnesses does not necessitate additional corroboration.
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15 November 1991 |
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Appeal against conviction for theft by public servant dismissed; credible prosecution evidence and accused's inconsistent statements upheld.
Criminal law – Theft by public servant – Proof beyond reasonable doubt – Credibility of prosecution witnesses – Access to strong room and keys – Inconsistent accused statements – No requirement for corroboration where no demonstrated interest.
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15 November 1991 |
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Unreliable night‑time identification and unproven possession/sale of stolen property led to acquittal for murder.
Criminal law – Murder – Visual identification at night – insufficiency of evidence; Possession of stolen property – requirement of proof and corroboration; Hearsay/unproduced material witnesses – inadmissibility/weight; Burden of proof – reasonable doubt and acquittal.
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15 November 1991 |
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Voice identification in darkness and inconclusive medical evidence rendered the murder convictions unsafe.
Criminal law — Identification evidence — Voice identification at night; corroboration required. Criminal law — Causation — Post-mortem report inconclusive to link assault to later death. Evidence — Delays, withdrawn charges and inconsistent statements undermine prosecution case.
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15 November 1991 |
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Conviction based solely on an unrecorded, involuntary, and uncorroborated confession cannot be sustained.
* Criminal law – Confession – Voluntariness and admissibility – Confession not recorded and declared involuntary – inadmissible as sole basis for conviction.
* Evidence – Corroboration – A confession must be corroborated by independent evidence before being the basis for conviction.
* Criminal procedure – Appellate interference – Conviction based on uncorroborated involuntary confession liable to be quashed.
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12 November 1991 |
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Accused’s confession corroborated the killing; self‑defence rejected and 18 years’ imprisonment imposed.
Criminal law – unlawful killing – corroboration of confession – assessment of witness credibility and inconsistencies – rejection of self‑defence – sentence.
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1 November 1991 |
| October 1991 |
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Court excluded a police-obtained confession due to reasonable doubt about its voluntariness and treated police account with suspicion.
* Evidence — Confessions to police — Evidence Act s.2 — confession admissible only if made voluntarily — prosecution bears burden to prove voluntariness beyond reasonable doubt.
* Evidence — Credibility of police evidence and chain of custody for physical exhibits — suspicious accounts may undermine admissibility.
* Criminal procedure — Statements to Justice of the Peace and absence of visible injuries do not conclusively disprove prior assault or coercion.
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29 October 1991 |
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Conviction for theft quashed due to weak identification; substituted with receiving stolen property and sentence reduced to two years.
Criminal law — Identification of stolen property — Limits of the doctrine of recent possession — Distinguishing theft from receiving stolen property — When substitution of conviction is appropriate — Sentence reduction on substitution.
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16 October 1991 |
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15 October 1991 |
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Out-of-time appeal refused: illness justified delay but proposed appeal lacked a reasonable prospect of success.
Criminal procedure – application for leave to appeal out of time – illness as good cause for delay – good cause insufficient alone – required reasonable/arguable prospect of success – proposed appeal lacked merit, application refused.
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15 October 1991 |
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Conviction for stealing by servant quashed where no evidence linked appellant to misappropriation after handing funds to superior.
* Criminal law – Stealing by a servant – Liability requires evidence linking accused to misappropriation after delivery of funds to a superior. * Evidence – Insufficiency of proof; conviction unsafe where prosecution fails to show participation or control over diverted funds. * Appeal – State may decline to support conviction; court may quash conviction if evidence inadequate.
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15 October 1991 |
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Conviction based on weak identification and recovery of common items was quashed; appeal allowed.
Criminal law — Identification evidence — Complainant unable to describe recovered items specifically — Recovery of common household articles insufficient to prove identity beyond reasonable doubt — Conviction quashed for unsafe identification.
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10 October 1991 |
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9 October 1991 |
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Conviction quashed where circumstantial identification (T‑shirt) was unreliable and the trial court ignored the appellant's alibi.
Criminal law – store breaking and stealing – conviction based on circumstantial evidence – identification of property without distinctive marks – requirement to exclude all reasonable hypotheses of innocence – trial court’s failure to consider alibi – conviction unsafe.
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9 October 1991 |
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Application for extension of time to appeal dismissed because the proposed appeal lacked overwhelming prospects of success.
Criminal procedure — Extension of time to appeal — Delay attributed to prison authorities and late receipt of judgment — Extension refused where proposed appeal lacks overwhelming prospects of success; credibility of eyewitness identification upheld.
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7 October 1991 |
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2 October 1991 |
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Conviction based on unverified footprints and suspicious conduct insufficient to prove theft beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law – circumstantial evidence – identification by footprints – proof beyond reasonable doubt – adverse inference from conduct – conviction quashed where reasonable hypothesis of innocence remained.
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2 October 1991 |
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2 October 1991 |
| September 1991 |
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High Court affirms District Court’s upholding of fine and its award of Tshs.33,750/= compensation, dismissing the appeal.
Criminal law – Malicious damage to property – Appeal against sentence and award of compensation – Appellate court will not interfere where lower courts’ assessments of sentence and compensation are justified and supported by reasoning.
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30 September 1991 |
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Employer’s report of employee as a thief to police was negligent, defamatory and the employee was awarded storage charges, travel costs and damages.
Defamation – report to police alleging theft – wrongful/ negligent reporting used to frustrate civil remedies – actionable; Possessory/storage entitlement where owner requests former employee to retain company vehicle; Counterclaim for loss dismissed where owner negligently delays recovery; Remedies: damages, storage charges, costs and interest.
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26 September 1991 |
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The appellant’s conviction, resting on an uncorroborated co-accused statement, was unsafe and was quashed.
* Criminal law – conviction based on co-accused’s statement – necessity for corroboration.
* Evidence – inconsistent statements by accused – effect on credibility.
* Prosecution duty – calling material witnesses (possible corroborator) – failure renders conviction unsafe.
* Remedy – quashing conviction and setting aside sentence where evidence is uncorroborated.
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25 September 1991 |
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Whether a village allocation to the respondent was valid where the appellant retained occupation and unexhausted improvements.
* Land law – village land allocation – validity of allocation where land is occupied and has unexhausted improvements; evidence required for reallocating occupied land.
* Possession/occupation – effect of temporary absence and leaving land in trust – whether there was acquiescence or continued proprietary control.
* Civil procedure – use and weight of court-ordered site visits and sketch plans in boundary disputes.
* Applicability of precedent – distinguishing Nyagodoro Gihonge v Chagha where long abandonment and reversion to bush were found.
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25 September 1991 |
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22 September 1991 |
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20 September 1991 |
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19 September 1991 |
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Failure to summarise to assessors and equally balanced evidence vitiated lower judgments; rehearing ordered de novo.
Civil procedure – assessors – duty to summarise facts and record assessors' opinions before judgment; burden of proof – where evidence is equally balanced claimant fails; setting aside proceedings – procedural irregularity vitiates judgment; rehearing de novo.
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17 September 1991 |
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17 September 1991 |
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Identification by moonlight and untested weapon evidence made the robbery conviction unsafe; appeal allowed.
* Criminal law – Robbery – Visual identification – Identification by moonlight without descriptive particulars may be unsafe. * Criminal procedure – Recovery of weapon – Untested firearm insufficient to link accused to crime absent ballistic evidence. * Evidence – Contradictory eyewitness accounts and absence of stolen property can render conviction unsafe.
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16 September 1991 |
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Daylight identification by known witnesses and a weak, unpleaded alibi justified upholding conviction and sentence.
Criminal law – robbery with violence – identification evidence in daylight by persons who knew the accused; alibi – requirement to place alibi on record under Criminal Procedure Act; assessment of witness credibility; appellate review of factual findings.
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12 September 1991 |
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8 September 1991 |
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Threats to use witchcraft, if genuinely believed by the accused and his community, can reduce murder to manslaughter.
* Criminal law – Provocation – Whether threats of witchcraft constitute legal provocation when believed by the accused and by ordinary members of his community.
* Criminal law – Murder versus manslaughter – Reduction to manslaughter where provocation by alleged witchcraft is established.
* Evidence – Confession omissions – court may accept surrounding evidence and probabilities despite omissions in formal statements.
* Sentencing – Deterrence in cases of killings motivated by witchcraft beliefs.
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6 September 1991 |
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2 September 1991 |
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2 September 1991 |
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2 September 1991 |
| August 1991 |
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29 August 1991 |
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20 August 1991 |
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The applicant’s claim of 171 omitted trees failed for lack of identification and independent evidence; appeal dismissed with costs.
Property damage – trees – necessity of identifying subject matter on site – requirement to call independent evidence to establish omission from prior suit – appellate deference to trial court’s inspection and findings.
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16 August 1991 |
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Default judgment entered for the plaintiff where the defendant failed to file a written statement of defence; interest and costs awarded.
Civil procedure – Default judgment – Defendant's failure to file written statement of defence – Entry of judgment under Order VIII rule 14, Civil Procedure Code 1966; award of interest and costs.
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16 August 1991 |
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Appeal against theft conviction dismissed; circumstantial evidence sufficient and restitution order varied to require immediate refund.
Criminal law – theft of vehicle spare parts; admissibility/weight of confession obtained before non-judicial persons; sufficiency of circumstantial evidence (guarding a fenced compound); restitution — timing of return or compensation.
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14 August 1991 |
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Appellant’s exclusive custody of a safe key and disappearance of money upheld conviction; seven-year sentence reduced to three years.
* Criminal law – Theft – Circumstantial evidence – Sole custody of main key to a safe and disappearance of money from inner chamber – sufficiency to infer guilt. * Criminal procedure – Appeal against sentence – whether maximum sentence was excessive and appropriate reduction on appeal.
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13 August 1991 |
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13 August 1991 |
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Omission of required court officer’s signature on an orally recorded Primary Court application renders proceedings defective; retrial ordered without fresh fees.
Primary Courts – Civil Procedure – Magistrates Courts (Civil Procedure in Primary Courts) Rules 1964, Rules 5(1) and 5(2) – oral applications must be recorded and signed by court clerk or magistrate and by applicant – omission of court officer’s signature renders proceedings improperly instituted – remedy: retrial without fresh fees.
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9 August 1991 |
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9 August 1991 |
| July 1991 |
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Prisoner’s transfer and non-receipt of judgment constituted good cause; leave to appeal out of time granted.
Criminal procedure – extension of time – leave to appeal out of time – prisoner’s transfer and non-receipt of judgment as good cause – absence of State opposition.
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23 July 1991 |