samwel gitau saitoti saimoo another vs republic 2019 tzca 611 30 august 2019

samwel gitau saitoti saimoo another vs republic 2019 tzca 611 30 august 2019

Failure to supply appellants with a complete record, including the substituted charge sheet and ruling on prima facie case, deprived them of the right to challenge every aspect of their conviction and violated fair trial rights; non-compliance with section 231(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act rendered the trial a nullity, requiring nullification of proceedings and a fresh trial.

Citation
samwel gitau saitoti saimoo another vs republic 2019 tzca 611 30 august 2019
Parties
Appellant: Samwel Gitau Saitoti @ Saimoo; Appellant: Michael Kimani Peter @ Mike @ Kim; Respondent: The Republic
Court
TZCA
Jurisdiction
Tanzania
Judgment Date
30 August 2019
Procedural Posture
Criminal Appeal / Second Appeal
Outcome
appeal allowed
Legal Topics
Armed Robbery, Conspiracy, Fair Trial Rights, Procedural Irregularity, Right to Access Court Documents
Source Language
English
Criminal Law Constitutional Law Armed Robbery Conspiracy Fair Trial Rights Procedural Irregularity Right to Access Court Documents

Case Brief

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Parties

Samwel Gitau Saitoti @ Saimoo

Appellant

Michael Kimani Peter @ Mike @ Kim

Appellant

The Republic

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Criminal Appeal / Second Appeal

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether failure to supply appellants with complete court records violated their right to a fair hearing
  2. 2 Whether absence of substituted charge sheet and ruling on prima facie case prejudiced the appellants
  3. 3 Whether non-compliance with section 231(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act rendered the trial a nullity

Ratio Decidendi

Failure to supply appellants with a complete record, including the substituted charge sheet and ruling on prima facie case, deprived them of the right to challenge every aspect of their conviction and violated fair trial rights; non-compliance with section 231(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act rendered the trial a nullity, requiring nullification of proceedings and a fresh trial.

Court Disposition

appeal allowed

Orders

  • Nullification of all proceedings and judgment of the High Court on first appeal
  • Nullification of judgment and proceedings before the trial court from immediately before appellants' plea to the missing substituted charge dated 24th October 2008