CSS 152 MAIN.pdf - National Open University of Nigeria

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CSS 152 INTRODUCTION TO NIGERIA CRIMINAL LAW foreseen, the consequences is an accident. The court defined accident as contained within section 24 of the Criminal Code as an act totally unexpected, unwilled, unintentional and without any fault as against an act which is deliberative, willed or intentional (Thomas v. State [1994] 4 NWLR (pt 337) 129. See the case of Agwu v. State (1998). Here, the appellant and his deceased brother had a melee, struggled over a rod, resulting in some vandalism and the deceased sustained some injuries, bled from upper shoulder and subsequently died. Neither party showed satisfactorily how the deceased got the fatal injury. The trial court convicted the appellant but the Court of Appeal in a unanimous judgement allowed the appeal. You should remember that the onus is on the prosecution to disprove the defence of accident. If the prosecution therefore failed as in the instant case, to show satisfactorily how the deceased got the fatal injury in the scuffle and the true cause of the injury or hurt was unknown, then the hurt or injury would qualify as and be called an accident. The Court of Appeal held as the defence of accident, like all other defences, presupposes that the accused physically committed the offence but should be acquitted because it was an accidental act. This principle is further illustrated in the case of Amayo v. The State (2001). In that case, a policeman at a road block ordered a pick-up van to stop. The driver tried to move on. Another policeman (accused) emerged, just then, there was a gunshot. A bullet from the gun fired fatally hit the conductor. The policeman was charged with murder. His defence was that his rifle fell from him, hit the ground and exploded just on the pick-up van which was passing by. He said he had no intention to fire, let alone kill. Hid defence was one of accident. But the High Court and the Court of Appeal rejected this defence, convicted him of murder and sentenced him to death. The accused further appealed to the Supreme Court. The issue canvassed before the Supreme Court was whether the appellant was exculpated from criminal responsibility for the death of the deceased by virtue of the provisions of section 24 cc. The Supreme Court held that no act is punishable if it is done involuntarily. And an involuntary act in this context (otherwise known as ‘auto malison’) means an act which is done by the muscles without any control by the mind. Or done by a person who is not conscious of what he is doing. The Supreme Court unanimously allowed the appeal and substituted a conviction of manslaughter for murder. 30
CSS 152 INTRODUCTION TO NIGERIA CRIMINAL LAW We shall discuss this further when we come to study defences to criminal responsibility. SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 2 What is the relevance of the case of Timbu Kian v. R (1982) to our Criminal Law? 4.0 CONCLUSION Essentially, the purpose of offences being defined with commensurate punishment attached if for certainty in the society. In this unit, you were exposed to the fact that offences are classified based on the weight of their criminal responsibility. This unit is very important in that we discussed law, offences and punishment. It helps you to know the consequences of certain acts and that a person can only be punished for the alleged offence committed not on another one. 5.0 SUMMARY Offences are classified into felonies, misdemeanor and simple offences. The classification is determined by the nature of punishment attached to a particular offence. That a person can only be punished for his fault and not the fault of others. That the English law and Nigerian law provide sources for the principle of no liability without fault. That except, there is negligence, section 24 of the criminal code provides a defence to an accused person who successfully pleads it. 6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT 1. If I strike my brother with a sharp knife in a manner not justified by law, it is an act, and if death results from my act, it an event. Discuss the above statement. 2. What are the consequences of classification of offences in our law? 7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING Stephen’s Digest on Criminal Law 9th Edition. 31
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