vol_4_4_chapter_4_part_III

CILS HARMONISED SHARIA PENAL CODE ANNOTATED
65. A person is presumed, unless the contrary is proved, to have knowledge of any material
fact if such fact is a matter of common knowledge.
66. A person who does an act in a state of voluntary intoxication is presumed to have the
same knowledge as he would have had if he had not been intoxicated.
67. (1) Nothing is an offence which is done by any person who is justified by law, or who by
reason of a mistake of fact and not by reason of a mistake of law, in good faith believes
himself to be justified by law in doing it.
(2) Whoever being a waliyy al-damm of a deceased person causes the death of the suspect
alleged to have killed the deceased shall not be punished with death, save as provided
under section 202 of this law. 95 Illustrations: 96
(a) A an officer of a court of justice being ordered by that court to arrest Y and after due enquiry
believing Z to be Y arrests Z. A has committed no offence.
(b) A sees Z commit what appears to A to be culpable homicide. A in the exercise to the best of his
judgment exerted in good faith of the power which the law gives to all persons of arresting murderers
seizes Z in order to bring him before the proper authorities. A has committed no offence, though it may
turn out that Z was acting in self defence.
(c) A kills B. C, the son of B, kills A before A is convicted of killing B. C will not be punished for
intentional homicide if it is established that A was indeed guilty of intentional homicide against B. 97
68. Nothing is an offence which is done by a person when acting judicially as a court of
justice or as a member of a court of justice in the exercise of any power which is or which in
good faith he believes to be given to him by law.
69. Nothing which is done in pursuance of or which is warranted by the judgment or order
of a court of justice, if done whilst such judgment or order remains in force, is an offence,
notwithstanding that the court may have had no jurisdiction to pass such judgment or order,
provided the person doing the act in good faith believes that the court had such jurisdiction.
70. Nothing is an offence which is done by accident or misfortune and without any criminal
intention or knowledge in the course of doing a lawful act in a lawful manner by lawful
means and with proper care and caution.
71. (1) Nothing is an offence by reason of an injury which it may cause or be intended by
the doer to cause or be known by the doer to be likely to cause, if it be done without any
criminal intention to cause injury and in good faith for the purpose of preventing or
avoiding other injury to person or property or of benefiting the person to whom injury
is or may be caused: Provided:
(a) that, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, the doing of the thing
was reasonable; and
94 PC omits this entire section, but see §72 below and notes thereto. Kano and Katsina have: “upon an
adult and sane person (mukallaf)”.
95 No similar subsection in PC or in Bauchi, Gombe, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Jigawa, Sokoto, Zamfara.
96 Illustrations not included in Gombe.
97 Illustration (c) not included in PC or in any of the SPCs.
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