NARTEY vs. THE REPUBLIC [1981]DLCA2162

Date	1981-09-09
Suit No.
Citation No.	[1981]DLCA2162

FRANCOIS JA

EDWARD WIREDU J.A

OKAI J.

T. K. AGADZI FOR THE APPELLANT.

J. O. AMUI CHIEF STATE ATTORNEY FOR THE RESPONDENT

[1981]DLCA2162
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >NARTEY <o:p></o:p>vs. <o:p></o:p>THE REPUBLIC <o:p></o:p>[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p>[1982-83] GLR 788<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

DATE:
9 SEPTEMBER
1981<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">

T. K. AGADZI FOR THE APPELLANT. <o:p></o:p>

J. O. AMUI, CHIEF STATE ATTORNEY, FOR THE
RESPONDENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:
<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

FRANCOIS AND EDWARD WIREDU JJ.A. AND
OKAI J.<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>JUDGMENT OF EDWARD WIREDU J.A.<o:p></o:p>Edward
Wiredu J.A. delivered the judgment of the court. This is an appeal from a
conviction of the appellant on 28 July 1980 on a charge of murder of one Amadu
Fulani at a farm situate on the Afienya Dawhenya road by Amate-Kisseih J. with
a jury at a criminal session of the High Court, Accra.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The facts
of this case reveal that the harm which resulted in the death of the late Amadu
Fulani was at the instance of the appellant and the main issue of fact of the
consideration of the jury was whether the act of the appellant amounted in law
to murder or whether the plea of self-defence as put up by the appellant was
made out or failing which whether the crime of murder on the available evidence
could be reduced to manslaughter by extreme provocation.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
appellant was the only eye-witness to the events resulting in the death of the
deceased. No one apart from him knew the circumstances surrounding the killing
of the deceased. The case for the prosecution depended solely and entirely on
the cautioned statement which the appellant made on 19 December 1978 when he
was in custody some three days after the incident. The material part of this
statement reads:<o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:
31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">“On
Sunday, 17 December 1978, at about 3.30 p.m. I went to the garden to water the
seedlings I planted from a small stream which passed through my garden. I was
watering the seedlings when a certain man whom I suspected to be a Hausa man
came with a cutlass and a stick in his hands. He inquired from me as to who
gave me the portion of the land on which I cultivated the garden. I replied him
that I did not obtain it from anybody. He repeated his question for two
consecutive times but I did not give him any further reply. The man whom I did
not know insisted that I should give hit a reply, then became offended and him
my right ribs with the stick he was holding. The deceased attempted to hit me
the second time with the stick and I seized it from his hand and threw it away.
The deceased attempted to wound me with the cutlass and it cut my right hand
when I tried to seize it. I saw that the deceased had become aggressive and I
therefore went to pick my own cutlass. That when I raised up my head the
deceased struck my forehead with his cutlass and I sustained serious wounds. I
started bleeding from the wound and I retaliated by inflicting wounds on him
with my cutlass. The deceased fell down as a result of the wounds and I left
him and went home to make a report. I became unconscious on my arrival at the
house but I later gained consciousness at Tema General Hospital, the following
day. I was informed at the hospital by the police that the Hausa man with whom
I fought was dead. I was later brought to the Afienya Police Station where I
made the above statement to that effect. I used to drink but on that day in
question I only took a drink in the morning but I was not drunk when I went to
the garden. Nobody was present in the bush when the fight took place. We were
there alone. I do not know the deceased in the town as I do not stay in the
town permanently.”<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>In his
evidence at the trial however, the appellant elaborated on his statement to the
police and the passage in the evidence material to the case goes as follows:<o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:
31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">“What
happened on the farm was that I was going to water the crops at about 3.30 p.m.
whilst I was there a certain man came to me and asked me whom I asked before I
farmed there; I said the farm is under the care of my father; then he was
trying to speak the Dangbe language but he couldn’t and started speaking Hausa
and I don’t understand Hausa so I couldn’t reply him. <o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:
31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">Q. When
you were going to this farm what were you carrying? <o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:
31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">A. was
carrying a bucket, a cutlass and a hoe. <o:p></o:p>