Wakilii

Rex v Murume (Criminal Appeal No. 108 of 1945)

East African Court of Appeal · [1945] EACA 24 · 1945 Conviction Quashed — Manslaughter Substituted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Criminal appeal from conviction of murder by H.M. Supreme Court of Kenya
Decision
Appellant's murder conviction set aside and substituted with manslaughter conviction; sentenced to three years hard labour

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The Court of Appeal held that where an accused, having suffered repeated thefts from his shamba, threw a spear killing a thief caught in the act of stealing sugar cane at night, the wrongful act of the thief constituted legal provocation under sections 202 and 203 of the Penal Code. The provocation was such as to deprive a person of the accused's class of self-control, reducing the offence from murder to manslaughter.

Outcome

Appellant's murder conviction set aside and substituted with manslaughter conviction; sentenced to three years hard labour

Facts

The appellant had suffered repeated thefts of produce from his shamba. One night, hearing the noise of his sugar cane being pulled out, he threw his spear at what he believed to be a thief, killing the deceased. The appellant stated he was very angry and, though uncertain whether it was a man or beast, believed it was a human being. He was convicted of murder in the Supreme Court of Kenya and appealed to the Court of Appeal for Eastern Africa.

Issues

  1. Whether the wrongful act of a thief stealing produce at night constituted legal provocation sufficient to reduce murder to manslaughter.

Orders

  • Appeal allowed.
  • Conviction of murder set aside.
  • Conviction of manslaughter substituted.
  • Sentence of three years hard labour imposed.

Rules and key headnotes

Manslaughter — Provocation — Killing a Thief in the Act of Stealing
Where an accused who has suffered repeated thefts kills a thief caught in the act of stealing from his property at night, the wrongful act of the thief may constitute legal provocation under sections 202 and 203 of the Penal Code if it is such as to deprive a person of the accused's class of self-control and the accused was so deprived when committing the act.
Provocation — Assessment — Fact-Specific Inquiry
It is difficult and undesirable to lay down a hard and fast rule in cases involving provocation; the facts of each case must be carefully considered to ascertain whether the provocation provisions apply.

Legislation cited (2)

  • Penal Code s.202
  • Penal Code s.203

Cases cited (1)

  • Rex v Machage s/o Mwita (2 E.A.C.A. 94)

Full judgment

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

Rex v Murume (Criminal Appeal No. 108 of 1945) [1945] EACA 24 (1 January 1945)
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.