REPUBLIC vs. DIRECTOR OF PRISONS; EX PARTE OHENE-DJAN

JUDGMENT OF AGYEPONG J. The applicant herein was on 8 August 1975, convicted of manslaughter of an unknown man by the High Court, Accra, presided over by Amissah J.A. sitting as an additional High Court judge, and was on 11 August 1975, sentenced to fifteen years’ imprisonment with hard labour. At the time of the present application, the applicant was serving his sentence at Ussher Fort Prison, Accra. The applicant contends that his conviction is null and void and of no effect; consequently his sentence of imprisonment and his incarceration at the Ussher Fort are illegal, and he is therefore entitled to be released under the Habeas Corpus Act, 1964 (Act 244). In support of his submission that the conviction was a nullity, Mr. Peter Adjetey, learned counsel for the applicant, on 28 June 1978 urged four main grounds: (1) that the applicant did not himself plead guilty to the offence of manslaughter; (2) that the Criminal Procedure Code, 1960 (Act 30), s. 239 (2) Und.....