Wakilii

Mpala & 2 Ors v Attorney General (CIVIL SUIT NO. 116 OF 2012)

High Court · [2019] UGHCCD 102 · 2019 Judgment for Plaintiffs AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for malicious arrest, detention and prosecution
Decision
Judgment entered in favour of all three plaintiffs with declarations of malicious arrest, detention and prosecution, and awards of special and general damages with interest

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court held that the arrest and detention of all three plaintiffs by police was malicious, carried out without reasonable cause, complaint, or warrant. The prosecution of the third plaintiff was similarly malicious, lacking probable cause and terminated by nolle prosequi. The Attorney General was vicariously liable for the police officers' wrongful actions and the loss suffered by the plaintiffs during their unlawful detention.

Outcome

Judgment entered in favour of all three plaintiffs with declarations of malicious arrest, detention and prosecution, and awards of special and general damages with interest

Facts

On 18 June 2010, the first and second plaintiffs (husband and wife) were arrested and detained for two days in connection with the murder of Nabirye Alice Kaluuya, then released on bond without charge. The third plaintiff was arrested on 20 February 2011, detained, and charged with the same murder. The Director of Public Prosecutions entered a nolle prosequi on 23 May 2011, withdrawing all charges. During the plaintiffs' detention, their homes and property were destroyed by a mob. No complaint was recorded before arrest, no warrant was presented, and no evidence linking any plaintiff to the deceased's death was produced. The Attorney General filed a defence asserting the arrests were carried out in good faith under constitutional mandate, but called no witnesses to support this claim.

Issues

  1. Whether the arrest and detention of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd plaintiffs was malicious?
  2. Whether the prosecution of the 3rd plaintiff was malicious?
  3. Whether the defendant is liable for the actions that led to the loss suffered by the plaintiffs?
  4. What reliefs are available to the plaintiffs?

Orders

  • Declaration that the arrest and detention of the 1st and 2nd plaintiffs was malicious.
  • Declaration that the arrest, detention and prosecution of the 3rd plaintiff was malicious.
  • Declaration that the defendant is liable for the actions of the police officers at the Kamuli and Nalufenya police stations and thus the plaintiffs' loss.
  • Special damages in favour of the 1st and 2nd plaintiffs in the sum of UGX 100,000,000.
  • Special damages in favour of the 3rd plaintiff in the sum of UGX 90,000,000.
  • General damages to the 1st and 2nd plaintiffs in the sum of UGX 30,000,000 each.
  • General damages to the 3rd plaintiff in the sum of UGX 45,000,000.
  • Interest on the above sums at 18% per annum from the date of judgment until payment in full.
  • The defendant shall meet the costs of the suit.

Rules and key headnotes

Tort Law — Malicious Arrest and Detention — Elements — Absence of Reasonable Cause
An arrest becomes wrongful when carried out in the absence of a complaint before arrest and, subject to exceptions, in the absence of an arrest warrant. Under Ugandan law, arrests without warrants are permitted only where police have reasonable cause to suspect that the person arrested has committed or is about to commit a crime.
Human Rights — Right to Personal Liberty — Constitutional Protection — Article 23(4)(b)
Any person arrested or detained upon reasonable suspicion of having committed or being about to commit a criminal offence must, if not earlier released, be brought to court as soon as possible but in any case not later than forty-eight hours from the time of arrest.
Tort Law — Malicious Arrest — Definition of Malice — Wrongful Intention and Absence of Justification
In law, malice means any wrongful intention and includes any intent which the law deems wrongful and which serves as a ground of liability. It entails the absence of all elements of justification, excuse or recognized mitigation, and will be inferred from a person's conduct. Acting maliciously in arrest cases is akin to lack of probable cause accompanied by zeal to accomplish the task at any cost.
Tort Law — Malicious Prosecution — Elements of the Tort
The tort of malicious prosecution requires four elements: (i) the defendant was instrumental in setting the law in motion against the plaintiff; (ii) the defendant acted without reasonable or probable cause; (iii) the defendant acted maliciously with an improper and wrongful motive; and (iv) the criminal proceedings were terminated in the plaintiff's favour.
Tort Law — Malicious Prosecution — Reasonable and Probable Cause — Objective Test
Reasonable and probable cause is an honest belief in the guilt of the accused based upon a full conviction founded upon reasonable grounds of the existence of circumstances which, assuming them to be true, would reasonably lead an ordinary prudent and cautious man placed in the position of the accuser to the conclusion that the person charged was probably guilty. The test is objective: the totality of material within the knowledge of the prosecutor at the time of instituting proceedings must be capable of satisfying an ordinary reasonable prudent person to the extent of believing the accused is probably guilty.
Tort Law — Malicious Prosecution — Termination in Favour of Plaintiff — Nolle Prosequi
Withdrawal of a criminal charge by nolle prosequi without fresh proceedings being brought is sufficient to establish that prosecution has been terminated in favour of the accused. Where no fresh prosecution has been brought and a substantial period has elapsed since discharge, this is considered equivalent to an acquittal and entitles the accused to bring suit for malicious prosecution.
Tort Law — Vicarious Liability — State Liability for Police Actions — Attorney General
The Attorney General is vicariously liable for the actions of police officers carried out in the course of duties they were ordinarily employed to perform, even where those actions were wrongful, negligent, or malicious, provided the officers were not acting beyond or outside their scope of employment.

Legislation cited (1)

Cases cited (15)

  • Magezi Raphael v Attorney General (HCCS No. 977 of 2000)
  • Lutaaya v Attorney General (HCCS No. 461 of 1989)
  • Henry Munyanganizi v Attorney General (HCCS No. 659 of 1996)
  • Mbowa Vrs East Mengo District Administration (1972) EA 352
  • Pike v. Waldrum, (1952) 1 Lloyd's Rep. 431
  • Kagane & Ors Vrs Attorney General & Anor (1969) EA 643
  • Herniman VS Smith (1938) AC 305
  • AG Vrs Farajara (1977) HCB at 30
  • Egbema Vrs West Nile District Administration (1972) EA 60
  • Muwonge Vs. AG (1967) EA 17
  • Hassan Vrs Hunt (1964) EA 201
  • Mugabi John v Attorney General (HCCS No. 133 of 2012)
  • Shah Vrs Mohamed Haji Abdulla (1962) EA 769
  • Byekwaso Mohammed (1973) HCB 20
  • James Frederick Nsubuga v Attorney General (HCCS No. 13 of 1993)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Mpala & 2 Ors Vs Attorney General (CIVIL SUIT NO. 116 OF 2012) [2019] UGHCCD 102 (3 April 2019)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.