IGNATIUS HOWE vs. THE REPUBLIC [2014]DLSC2948

Date	2014-05-22
Suit No.	CIVIL APPEAL NO. J3/3/2013
Citation No.	[2014]DLSC2948

R.C. OWUSU JSC (MS) (PRESIDING)

J.DOTSE JSC

ANIN-YEBOAH JSC

N.S GBADEGBE JSC

J.B. AKAMBA JSC

NII AKWEI BRUCE- THOMPSON ESQ. FOR THE APPELLANT.

YVONNE ATTAKORA OBUOBISA (CSA) FOR THE REPUBLIC.

[2014]DLSC2948
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >IGNATIUS HOWE<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>THE REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>[SUPREME COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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CIVIL APPEAL NO. J3/3/2013&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;DATE: 22ND MAY, 2014<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>NII AKWEI BRUCE- THOMPSON
ESQ. FOR THE APPELLANT.<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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&nbsp;YVONNE ATTAKORA OBUOBISA (CSA) FOR THE REPUBLIC.<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;
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R.C. OWUSU JSC (MS) (PRESIDING), J.DOTSE JSC,
ANIN-YEBOAH JSC, N.S GBADEGBE JSC, J.B. AKAMBA JSC<o:p></o:p>

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

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>AKAMBA,
JSC<o:p></o:p>The Appellant was charged
before the High Court, Cape Coast with the offence of Robbery. He was convicted
on 21st May 2007 and sentenced to a term of forty-five (45) years
imprisonment with hard labour. He appealed to the Court of Appeal against his
conviction and sentence.&nbsp; The appellate
court on 2nd December 2007 dismissed the appeal.&nbsp; He has appealed to this court on as many as
eight grounds. These are:<o:p></o:p>(I)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Their Lordships of the Court of Appeal
erred in law in refusing to apply the principle on identification in the case
of Karim v The Republic (2003-2004) 2
SCGLR 812 to the facts of the case.<o:p></o:p>(II)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Their Lordships of the Court of Appeal
erred in holding that the identification parade was not flawed.<o:p></o:p>(III)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The judgment and conviction cannot be
supported having regard to the evidence on record.<o:p></o:p>(IV)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The Court of Appeal misdirected itself when
it speculated that the witnesses were able to identify the accused person
‘maybe the mask fell off his face’ and so occasioned a miscarriage of justice.<o:p></o:p>(V)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The sentence of 45 years affirmed by the
Court of Appeal was excessive.<o:p></o:p>(VI)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
The learned judges of the Court of Appeal
erred when they held that the prosecution met the standard of proof in this
case.<o:p></o:p>