Wakilii

Uganda v K.R (Criminal Session 188 of 2024)

High Court · [2024] UGHCCRD 43 · 2024 Trial Declared Nullity — Accused Acquitted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Criminal trial at first instance. Accused indicted for murder. Matter came up for plea taking. Defence counsel raised preliminary human rights objection before plea could be taken.
Decision
Accused acquitted before plea taking. Trial declared a nullity for violation of non-derogable constitutional rights.

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that a juvenile offender charged with murder but remanded in an adult prison for over three years had her non-derogable constitutional right to a fair hearing violated. Section 11(2) of the Human Rights (Enforcement) Act 2019 mandates that where an accused person's non-derogable rights are infringed, the trial must be declared a nullity and the accused acquitted. Trial declared a nullity; accused acquitted.

Outcome

Accused acquitted before plea taking. Trial declared a nullity for violation of non-derogable constitutional rights.

Facts

K.R, a juvenile aged 17 years at the time of the alleged offence, was charged with murder contrary to sections 188 and 189 of the Penal Code Act for an incident on 22 April 2021. She was committed for trial before the High Court on 30 August 2021 and remanded to Luzira Women's Prison on 22 September 2021. She remained on remand for over three years. When the matter came up for plea taking on 13 May 2024, defence counsel raised a preliminary objection that the accused, though a juvenile at the time of the offence, had been remanded in an adult prison contrary to constitutional and statutory protections for child offenders. An immunization card tendered in court confirmed she was born on 25 August 2003, making her 17 years 7 months at the time of the offence. The state conceded the violation.

Issues

  1. Whether the child's human and constitutional rights were violated.
  2. Whether the violation renders her trial a nullity.

Orders

  • Trial declared a nullity under Section 11(2) of the Human Rights (Enforcement) Act 2019.
  • Accused acquitted.

Rules and key headnotes

Human Rights — Juvenile Justice — Non-Derogable Right to Fair Hearing — Violation by Remand in Adult Prison
A child offender who is kept in lawful custody or detention has a constitutional right under Article 34(6) of the Constitution to be kept separately from adult offenders. The right to a fair hearing under Article 44(c) is a non-derogable right. Where a juvenile offender charged with a capital offence is remanded in an adult prison, that right is violated.
Criminal Law & Procedure — Juvenile Justice — Maximum Remand Period — Reduction by Amendment
Section 20 of the Children Amendment Act 2016 amended Section 91(5)(a) of the Children Act to reduce the maximum remand period for juveniles charged with capital offences from six months to three months. Section 99(3) of the Children Act, which refers to six months, contradicts this amendment and must be read subject to it. The maximum statutory remand period for juveniles charged with capital offences is three months.
Criminal Law & Procedure — Juvenile Justice — Right to Speedy Trial — Discharge After Twelve Months
Section 99(4) of the Children Act provides that where a case against a child is not completed within twelve months after the plea has been taken, the child shall be discharged. This section is intended to give effect to the constitutional right to a speedy trial under Article 28 of the Constitution.
Criminal Law & Procedure — Juvenile Justice — Charging and Indictment — Statutory Penalty Under Children Act
Where a child is charged with a capital offence, the charge sheet and indictment must indicate the applicable penalty under Section 94(1)(g) of the Children Act, not the death penalty prescribed under the Penal Code Act. The High Court sits as a family and children court in capital offences against juveniles. Failure to explain the correct statutory penalty violates the right under Article 28(3)(b) of the Constitution.
Constitutional Law — Human Rights Enforcement — Mandatory Nullification of Trial — Section 11(2) Human Rights (Enforcement) Act 2019
Where it appears to a judge or is brought to the attention of the court that an accused person's non-derogable rights and freedoms under Article 44 of the Constitution have been infringed, Section 11(2) of the Human Rights (Enforcement) Act 2019 mandates that the judge shall declare the trial a nullity and acquit the accused person. This provision is mandatory, not discretionary.
Criminal Law & Procedure — Juvenile Justice — Definition of Child — Age at Time of Offence
A person is a child under Section 2 of the Children Act if they are below the age of 18 years at the time of the offence. Even if the accused has attained the age of 18 years by the time of committal or trial, they remain a child for the purposes of trial procedure if they were below 18 years when the offence was committed. The trial must be conducted in accordance with juvenile justice procedure.
Criminal Law & Procedure — Remand — Duty of Magistrate to Remand in Suitable Place
Section 122(2) of the Magistrates Courts Act requires that when remanding an accused person, the magistrate must be satisfied that they are remanding the suspect in a suitable place for that person. Adult suspects are remanded in adult prisons; juvenile offenders must be remanded in children's remand homes. Where a suspect appears young, the magistrate is duty bound to inquire into the age of the suspect.

Legislation cited (31)

Full judgment

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Uganda v K.R (Criminal Session 188 of 2024) [2024] UGHCCRD 43 (5 June 2024)
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.