1.0 Introduction
The recent decision of the Supreme Court on the trial and conviction of Sunday Jackson, a resident of Adamawa State, has raised several opinions and criticisms both domestically and internationally. The accused had been charged with the offence of murder after he had initially been attacked by a herdsman, whom he later overpowered and stabbed to death.
When he was arrested and tried, the court convicted him for the offence of murder – leading to a death sentence. The accused appealed to both the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, both of whom dismissed his appeal and upheld the decision of the lower court, sentencing him to death.
This case raises several issues which shall be discussed, including the meaning of murder, the ingredients which need to be proven for an offence of murder, the defence of self-defence for a murder charge, and lastly, the ingredients of self-defence.
2.0 What is Murder and How can it be Established in Court?
It is important to note that in the aforementioned matter, the accused [who has now been convicted] was charged with the offence of murder. Murder is a capital offence in Nigeria, which is punishable by death – which means that where a person takes the life of another, they will also be sentenced to death were found guilty of the offence for which they are charged.
In Nigeria, there are two notable criminal laws in existence: the Criminal Code, which is used in the Southern part of Nigeria [including the East, West and South] and the Penal Code which is in existence in Northern Nigeria and The Federal Capital Territory [FCT]. The most important fact to point out under these laws is that a person charged under the Criminal Code will be charged with the offence of murder. While a person charged under the Penal Code will be charged with the offence of culpable homicide.
Hence, while the legal terms differ, they still are used in the same way – which is the intentional causing of grievous bodily harm, which may cause the death of another.
2.1 Ingredients of Murder
In this case, the accused had been charged with the offence of murder by the prosecution. However, to prove this, there are several factors which the prosecution must show before the accused can be found guilty.
In charge of murder, it has been established by the court in the case of Peter v. State, that the following ingredients must be proven before the court can so hold. The factors which need to be established include:
- That the deceased died;
- That the act which caused the death of the deceased was an unlawful act or omission; and
- The act which caused the deceased’s death was intentional with the knowledge that death was a probable consequence of the harm being caused.
Hence, where the prosecution can prove these factors to the court based on available evidence, the court may find the accused guilty of murder. However, where a person is charged with the offence f murder, there are several defences which may avail them – with the most important defence here being self-defence, which the accused pleaded in this case. This defence will be examined further.
3.0 Meaning of self defence
The main defence raised by the appellant in this case was that of self-defence, as he had been attacked and injured by the herdsman, before he was able to overpower him and defend himself. It is important to therefore assess what the meaning of self-defence may be, as well as the ingredients which a defendant must prove when making the defence in a murder charge.
The concept of self-defence is one of the exceptions and defences to a charge of murder under the law. It ensures that where persons defend themselves in the face of imminent danger which may cost them their lives, they can defend themselves against such threats where the need arises. In Ita & Anor v. State, the Court defined self-defence as:
“Self defence is a defence of oneself or other persons whom one is under a duty to defend against a wrong doer in prevention of a forcible and violent felony. A man is justified in using against an assailant a proportionate amount of force in defence of himself or other persons who he is under a duty to defence where he considers his life or such persons lives to be in danger”
From the above definition, self-defence is recognised by the courts, and a possible defence under the law, as it allows the accused to defend themselves where they consider their lives to be in danger. This defence is also recognised under the constitution. Section 33 of the constitution which provides for the right to life, also provides under section 33(2) (a) that the right to life will not be breached where it occurs in the defence of another person or property.
3.1 Ingredients for self-defence
In proving a case of self-defence, there are several ingredients which must be proven by the defendant before the court may acquit the defendant based on this defence. Amongst the ingredients which must be proven include:
- The attack on the accused must not have been caused by a fault of theirs;
- There must be a threat to their life or possibility of intense bodily harm;
- There must be no way to escape or retreat from the threat; and
- The taking of the life must be necessary at that point in time.
This was the position of the court in Omoregie v. State, where the court established the above criteria as the ingredients needed to be proven to show self defence in a charge of murder. However, in Onwe v. State, the Court held that a defence of self-defence will fail where the prosecution is able to prove that the action of the accused was in no way an act of self-defence. Thus, unlike a charge of murder where the onus is on the parties to prove beyond reasonable doubt in a charge of murder, where an accused pleads self-defence, the onus will be on the defence to disprove the argument of the accused with regards to self-defence.
4.0 Conclusion
In conclusion, it is important to note that everyone has a right to life under the constitution, and the intentional causing of harm which will lead to death [murder] is a capital offence punishable by death under the law. However, the defence of self-defence is not automatically granted by the court and may only avail the accused where he can prove the necessary factors identified in this paper.
