Shabe Alh. Galadima V. The State (2017)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report

AMIRU SANUSI, J.S.C.

The appellant herein and two other co-accused are members of the same family. The deceased person called Safiya Nomau was their cousin, as her father and the father of the appellant and the two other co-accused persons were brothers. All of them are therefore members of the same family. The appellant and his two brothers/co-accused were jointly arraigned before the Jigawa State High Court (the trial Court), on charge No.JDV/21C/96 and tried on the offence of culpable homicide punishable with death for causing the death of their cousin Safiya, contrary to Section 221 of the Penal Code read with Section 79 of the Penal Code. In a considered judgment delivered by the trial Court on 10th October, 2000, the appellant and the other two co-accused person were found guilty as charged, convicted and sentenced to death.

Dissatisfied with his conviction and sentence, the appellant and the two other convicts jointly appealed to the Court of Appeal, Kaduna division (the Court below) which dismissed their appeals for want of merit in a single judgment delivered on 8th February, 2013 and

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affirmed the conviction and sentence passed on them by the trial Court. The appellant further appealed to this Court. This judgment relates only to the present appellant SHABE ALH GALADIMA.

BRIEF FACTS OF THE CASE

The brief facts giving rise to this appeal as could be deduced from the testimonies of the witnesses in the record, are simply summarized as below.

The appellant herein, along with his two other co-accused persons jointly tried at the trial Court were alleged to have caused the death of their cousin (sister) Safiya Nomau by attacking the latter and beating her with sticks and hoe. They were alleged to have mercilessly beaten her on her head and all over her body which resulted in her instant death. At the trial, the prosecution, now respondent, called five witnesses to prove its case. It tendered the hoe used by the appellant and other co-accused and marked Exhibit 2. Also tendered in evidence, were two Writs of Possession of land issued in favour of the Appellant’s father by Ringim Upper Area Court which were marked as Exhibits 1 and 1(A). The land, for which the Writs of Possession of land were issued was the remote cause of the dispute

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between the deceased and her cousins (brothers) i.e the appellant and other co-accused persons. After the prosecution closed its case, the defence or appellant called two other witnesses to testify.

As I said supra, the trial Court convicted and sentenced the appellant who unsuccessfully appealed to the Court below, as the latter Court dismissed his appeal and affirmed the conviction and sentence passed on him by the trial Court. Sequel to that, the appellant herein, further appealed to this Court.

Due to his dissatisfaction with the judgment of the Court below, the appellant appealed to this Court vide a notice of appeal dated 20th February, 2013 but filed on 21st February, 2013, containing six grounds of appeal.

In keeping with rules and practice applicable in this Court, learned counsel to the parties filed and exchanged briefs of argument. The appellant, on 24/4/2013 filed Appellant’s Brief of argument, settled by one Nasir Abdu Dagiri Esq, wherein he distilled three issues for the determination of the appeal out of the six grounds of appeal contained in the notice of appeal. The three issues for determination are reproduced hereunder:-<br< p=””

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