Wakilii

Rex v Weraga (Criminal Appeal 147-1934.)

East African Court of Appeal · [1935] EACA 63 · 1935 Appeal Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Criminal appeal from murder conviction
Decision
Appellant's conviction for murder upheld

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

When a plea of not guilty is entered, it must be taken as a general denial. Words spoken in answer to the charge which are construed as the plea cannot also be construed in derogation of that plea. An inculpatory statement made in response to a charge cannot be used against an accused person once a not guilty plea is entered. The court found the appellant guilty of murder, holding that the defence of provocation raised was not of such a nature as to reduce the crime to manslaughter.

Outcome

Appellant's conviction for murder upheld

Facts

The appellant was charged with murder. On being arraigned, he stated: "I killed him in anger." A plea of not guilty was entered and the trial proceeded. Both in his summing up and in his judgment, the trial judge referred to the fact that the appellant had admitted killing the deceased but that he did so in anger. The appellant raised a defence of provocation at trial.

Issues

  1. Whether an inculpatory statement made in answer to a charge can be used against an accused person when a plea of not guilty has been entered.
  2. Whether the provocation raised by the appellant was sufficient in law to reduce the crime from murder to manslaughter.

Orders

  • Appeal dismissed.
  • Conviction for murder upheld.

Rules and key headnotes

Criminal Procedure — Plea — Effect of Not Guilty Plea — Inculpatory Statements in Answer to Charge
When a plea of not guilty is entered, it must be taken as a general denial, and words spoken in answer to the charge which are construed as the plea cannot also be construed in derogation of the plea.
Evidence — Admissibility — Inculpatory Statements Made at Arraignment After Not Guilty Plea Entered
An inculpatory statement made in answer to a charge cannot be used against an accused person if a plea of not guilty is entered.
Criminal Law — Murder — Provocation — Sufficiency to Reduce Murder to Manslaughter
A defence of provocation must be of such a nature that it can be regarded in law as sufficient to reduce the crime from murder to manslaughter.

Cases cited (1)

  • Rex v Pirmin bin Kunjanga (Criminal Appeal No. 27 of 1934)

Full judgment

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

Rex v Weraga (Criminal Appeal 147-1934.) [1935] EACA 63 (1 January 1935)
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.