BARKAH vs. THE STATE

JUDGMENT OF MILLS-ODOI J.S.C. Mills-Odoi J.S.C. delivered the judgment of the court. We dismissed this appeal and indicated that we would give our reasons later and, accordingly, we now give our reasons. The charge against the appellant in this case was that he, on 21 April 1964 at Bebome village, near Asamama in the Eastern Circuit, murdered one Idrisu Basare. The points which it is necessary for the prosecution to prove in order to make out their case are not in doubt. The question as to this has often been decided, and the rule is well established. It is not enough to know that the appellant did the act which caused the death of the deceased. The prosecution must show that the prisoner intended that his act would likely cause or contribute to cause the death of the deceased. No one, therefore, would be convicted of murder without proof of that intent. It has been decided that the burden of proving these facts is on the prosecution. The difficulty is to be clear in explaining a case...