Kingsley Okoro v. The State (2023)

LAWGLOBAL HUB Lead Judgment Report – SUPREME COURT

MOHAMMED LAWAL GARBA, JSC (Delivering the leading judgment)

The appellant was charged with and convicted for the offence of murder contrary to and punishable under the provision of section 319 (1) of the Criminal Code, Cap. 48, Vol. II, Laws of the defunct Bendel State, applicable to Delta State, by the High Court of Delta State, Udu (the trial court) in a judgment delivered on the 28th July, 2008. He was sentenced to death by hanging.

The very sad and pathetic facts which led to the conviction of the appellant, so-called Pastor, as borne out by the evidence placed before the trial court, including the proved confessional statements by the appellant admitted as exhibits B and C, are that the appellant who was the husband of the deceased, intentionally and deliberately, poured petrol on the carpet of their bedroom, brought a packet of matches into the room, lit a stick of the matches and dropped it on the soaked carpet with the deceased in the room. Expectedly, as intended by the appellant, there was an instant explosion of fire which engulfed the room and severely burnt the deceased who died from the burns.

The appellants appeal against his conviction and sentence to the Court of Appeal, Benin Division (court below) was dismissed and the judgment of the trial court was affirmed in the judgment delivered on the 11th December, 2012.

This appeal is against the said judgment of the court below and in the amended appellants brief dated 11th but filed on the 12th October, 2022 at the hearing of the appeal in the court, on the 24th November, 2022, at page 1, the learned counsel for the appellant has stated that:-

This is an appeal from the Court of Appeal, Benin Division (Coram Ogunwumiju, Yakubu, Awotoye, JJSC) delivered on 11th December, 2021, which affirmed the conviction and sentence of death passed on the appellant for murder pursuant to section 316 of the Criminal Code. The notice of appeal is dated 6th February, 2013 and is found at pages 215 – 221 of the record of appeal. The appeal challenges the decision of the Court of Appeal affirming the conviction and death sentence passed on the appellant by the trial court.”

As stated above, the notice of appeal filed against the judgment of the court below is at page 215 – 221 of the record of appeal and it was dated and filed on the 6th February, 2013 in this court.

After hearing the appeal on the 24th November, 2022 and at the conference of the Hon. Justices on the Panel before whom the appeal was argued, it was observed that the notice of appeal filed on the 6th February, 2013 by the appellant against the judgment of the court below delivered on the 11th December, 2012, was filed out of the period of time prescribed by the provisions of section 27 (2) (b) of the Supreme Court Act, 2004 which stipulates that:-

The periods prescribed for giving of notice of appeal or notice of application for leave to appeal are:-

(b) in an appeal in a criminal case, thirty days from the date of the decision appealed against.

It is clear from these provisions that the period of time within which the notice of an appeal against the decision of the court below to this court in a criminal matter, is limited to thirty (30) days from the date the judgment appealed against, was given or delivered by that court.

Therefore, for a notice of appeal against the decision of the court below to this court in a criminal matter to be properly, validly and competently be given, filed and brought before this court, in accordance and compliance with the provisions, it must be given or filed within thirty (30) days from the date the court below delivered the judgment in question. It follows, then, that a notice of appeal given against the decision of the court below to this court in a criminal case, after the expiration or outside of the period of days (30 days) prescribed and limited in the provisions, would have been given out of the statutory period of time limited for so doing, would be invalid and incompetent.

This position of the law is now elementary and so common knowledge in the appellate courts to require or call for reference or reliance on judicial authorities thereon, which litter all Law Reports in the country.

However, the provisions of section 27 (4) of the Act, provides that:-