CRIME PROSECUTION CASES CONNECTED TO NIGERIAN CHILDREN AND WOMEN – 4

OMOGHENE AJARIA V. THE QUEEN

Women and Business/Security – Murder – Four fisherwomen attacked by a male assailant who they had refused to gift fish to leading to death of one woman – Security of rural women at work – Attitude of court thereto

OSUGO V. THE QUEEN

Women/Children and Justice Administration – Murder – Women/Children as indirect victims of crime – Mother whose son committed murder – Deposition of mother, who died before the trial as vital evidence for the prosecution – Evidence of a schoolboy aged about nine regarding the matchete used for the killing – Treatment of – Possible legal and traumatic effects

OTUPU V. THE QUEEN

Women/Children and Security – Murder of Baby – Refusal of mother to put baby down on the directive of assailant who wanted to kill mother – Verbal abuse of assailant by mother – Whether constitutes defence of provocation at law

OYAKHIRE V. STATE

Children/Women and Crime/Justice Administration – Security and Policing – Women/children as direct and Indirect victims of crime – Rogue police personnel who brutally murdered innocent citizens, perpetrated armed robbery on the highway and committed arson with impunity – Girlfriends of armed robbers and safekeeping of crime booties – Attitude of courts thereto

“This case represents the height of man’s inhumanity to man. The Appellant and his co-accused police constables employed by the nation to protect the lives and properties of its citizenry embarked on this unlawful mission and in their brazen brutality terminated the lives of these five innocent and defenceless victims, with unimaginable damages to their loved ones and families back at their various homes. The case demonstrates the regrettable reality that the numerous police check points along our highways only give the citizenry a false sense of security.” Per Tabai, JSC

OZANA UBIERHO V. THE STATE

Women living with Disabilities – Hunchback – Security of Young People and Crime/Religion – Belief in witchcraft – Gruesome murder of a hunchback mother by young boys for ritual purposes

Young People and Crime/Justice Administration – Minors and criminal conviction – 14 year old as accused person after alleged collaborators died in prison or were subsequently  released on no case submission – Effect of age of convict on sentencing proceedings for capital crimes – How treated

“From all parameters of this case on appeal to this court, the facts show convincingly that the appellant was both directly (from his confessional statement) circumstantially and inferentially (from the evidence of the prosecution witnesses) neck deep in the brutal murder of the [deceased]. His sole aim was to use the hunchback to prepare medicine. Such a primitive and primordial concept and belief that is asinine, revolting and nauseating in the extreme bespeaks of the nadir our people have sunk in their inordinate and demonic desire to make money” – Per Pats-Acholonu, JSC

PETER ABIOLA AND OTHERS  V. COMMISSIONER OF POLICE

Women and Justice Administration – Assault on a woman – Accused persons including another woman and a school girl – Court’s consideration of allegation of prevalence of assault of such nature – Whether deterrent sentencing proper

RABI ISMA’IL V. THE STATE

Women and Justice Administration – Women in crime – Trafficking in young girls – Woman convicted of trafficking other young persons for illicit and criminal purposes – Attitude of court thereto – How treated

SUNDAY MODUPE V. THE STATE

Women in Business – Armed Robbery enabled by hired employees – How treated

THE KING V. LOVEGROVE

Children/Women and Justice Administration – Wife-Killing – Murder of wife following death of child – Wife alleged to have been carrying on adulterous relations and verbally abusing the husband – Whether husband’s belief that wife’s conduct brought about death of child plus verbal abuses amounted to provocation

Women/Children and Justice Administration – Matricide (Mother-Killing) – Murder trial attracting death penalty – Assignment of the responsibility of such defence of a son accused of the heinous crime of murdering mother to a fresh (NYSC) lawyer and to a reluctant private practitioner – Failure to provide effective defence  – Attitude of court thereto – How conviction by trial court treated on appeal

UDOFA V. THE KING

Women and Healthcare – Murder – Unlawful abortion leading to death of woman – Access to primary and pre-natal care – Procurement of abortion through abortificient concoction prepared by a herbalist – Access to primary and pre-natal care

Women and Justice administration – Evidence –rule relating to evidence of spouse of an accused person – Whether there is need to prove monogamous marriage within the meaning of section 161 of the Evidence Ordinance (Cap. 63) or that the witness was not a “wife” as defined by section 2 of the Ordinance, and therefore a competent and compellable witness if called upon the application of the person charged – Relevant considerations thereto

UGBO V.  THE QUEEN

Women and Security of homestead/Justice Administration – Woman widowed by a man who killed husband while he was lying with her and their baby – Witchcraft – Assailant’s belief that he was mysteriously poisoned by deceased in the night by calling out his name – How treated

UGWU V. QUEEN

Young Persons and access to Healthcare – Attack of insanity/mental blackout on 18 year old person – Recourse to herbalist – Implication for security of lives, justice administration and family wellbeing –

Young women and security of lives/Justice Administration:– Young woman grievously assaulted by mentally ill brother – How treated

UKUT V. QUEEN

Women and Murder – Woman killed by lover – Whether verbal/physical abuse and neglect amount to provocation at law – Relevant considerations

UMOREN V. THE QUEEN

Women and Justice Administration – Unhappy marriages and customary methods of resolving quarrels between couples – Wife murdered by husband with about 10 blows of the machete – Whether running away or denying sex to husband amounted to provocation – Practice of summoning the police to a woman bleeding to death instead of emergency services – Absence of emergency medical services  – Implications for justice administration

USAN V. THE STATE

Young people and Human Rights/Justice Administration – Murder of a 15 year old girl – Whether claim by accused that father of deceased had a habit of chasing him with a machete because he is a leper amounted to provocation at law

UWELE  V. THE QUEEN

Children and Customary Law – Twin-killing – Killing of twin babies by father – Customary abhorrence of twins – Participation of women and general community – Whether an acceptable defence to charge of murder – Attitude of court thereto

“An old woman Nwofuko Edene, whom the Chief Justice described as “a shrivelled, bent, and almost blind old woman, barely capable of walking” said the applicant came and called her in her house and told her that his wife had delivered twins. She went with him to his house and saw the twins. She said that the applicant put the two babies, crying, in a pot, carried it, and asked her and one other old woman Ugbala Ago, to follow him. After they had gone a long distance the applicant went into the bush and after some time returned without the pot and the babies, and they returned home. The babies have not been seen again since.” Per Mbanefo F.J

VALLANCE V. THE QUEEN

Women and Justice Administration/Customary Law – Wife-Killing – Mother of 4 children who left husband to move in with another man but was ordered by local court to return to 1^st husband as current lover was unable to pay back bride price – Woman’s throat slit on the night of the day she returned home – How treated

WATSON V. WATSON

Women/Children and Divorce – Children and Paternity/Legitimacy – Adultery on part of wife – Paternity of child born during pendency of marriage – Child conceived when mother was on contraceptives – Whether displaces the presumption of legitimacy and paternity for a child born during pendency of marriage – Custody and maintenance of a child born during the pendency of a marriage dissolved on ground of adultery of wife – Best interest of the child – How treated

YANOR  V. THE STATE

Young people and Justice Administration – Indirect victims of Crime – Murder of Tax collector – Evidence of son who witnessed mobs set upon deceased father and clobbered him to death – How treated

YARA V. THE QUEEN

Women and Justice Administration – Wife-killing – Appellant/husband who strangulated wife to death for stealing his yam – Whether third party who aided beating of wife, burying of her dead body but not strangulation is also guilty of murder

YAW NGOROH AND KWESI GYAN V. THE KING

Women and Security/Murder – Witchcraft cases – Elderly woman killed because of belief that she was responsible for negative misfortunes which befell her accuser – How treated

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