HC: Criminal Division (Uganda)

The Criminal Division is Responsible for hearing all serious criminal offences referred to it by the Magistrates' Courts. According to the Principal Judge's Circular, except for Commercial Court Judges who must attend to only Commercial Court cases, the rest of the Judges of the High Court who are based in Kampala are members of the Criminal Division irrespective of the other Divisions of the High Court that they belong to.

Each of the above judges is supposed to do, at least, one High Court Criminal Session in a year at Kampala

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High Court Building at Plot 2, the Square.

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https://judiciary.go.ug/data/smenu/13/Criminal%20Division.html

13 judgments

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13 judgments

Citation	Judgment date
November 2022
Nalwoga v Uganda (Criminal Revision Cause 1 of 2021) [2022] UGHCCRD 96 (30 November 2022) Criminal proceedings over disputed land were stayed pending civil determination to prevent abuse of court process. * Criminal procedure – supervisory jurisdiction – High Court power under Sections 48 and 50 Criminal Procedure Code and Section 17 Judicature Act to examine and stay magistrates’ records. * Civil v. criminal – land ownership disputes (kibanja v registered title) should be resolved in civil proceedings; criminalisation may constitute abuse of process. * Magistrates Courts Act s.209 – prohibition on proceeding where matter is directly and substantially in issue in a previously instituted suit between same parties. * Article 120 – DPP duties to consider public interest and prevent abuse of legal process.	30 November 2022
Namujumbi v Uganda (Criminal Miscellaneous Application No. 59 of 2022) [2022] UGHCCRD 58 (30 November 2022)	30 November 2022
Openjo v Uganda (Criminal Miscellaneous Application No. 66 of 2022) [2022] UGHCCRD 59 (29 November 2022)	29 November 2022
Uganda v KIntu (HCT-00-CR-SC 818 of 2019) [2022] UGHCCRD 150 (23 November 2022) Circumstantial and identification evidence established the accused’s participation and malice in a fatal group assault, justifying a murder conviction. * Criminal law – Murder – Elements: death, unlawfulness, malice aforethought, participation. * Identification evidence – quality tested by lighting, distance, duration and familiarity; circumstantial evidence can supply gaps in direct ID. * Alibi – accused’s alibi does not shift burden; prosecution must disprove beyond reasonable doubt.	23 November 2022
Serugo v Uganda (Criminal Appeal No. 69 of 2022) [2022] UGHCCRD 76 (17 November 2022) Appellant’s conviction for burning crops upheld; imprisonment and compensation maintained but the fine set aside. Criminal law – Malicious damage to property – Elements: ownership, destruction, intent, unlawfulness; identification evidence; corroboration by investigatory and agricultural expert evidence; sentencing – appellate interference limited; fine set aside where imposed with imprisonment without default provision.	17 November 2022
Uganda v Kakinda (HCT-00-CR-SC 58 of 2020) [2022] UGHCCRD 153 (15 November 2022) Circumstantial and eyewitness evidence, plus fatal blunt‑force injuries, supported conviction for murder under sections 188–189 PCA. Criminal law – Murder – elements of murder (death, unlawfulness, malice aforethought, participation) – malice inferred from nature of injuries and conduct – circumstantial evidence and single competent witness – credibility and minor contradictions – adverse inference from flight/avoidance.	15 November 2022
Uganda v Mugera and Another (HCT-00-CR-SC 44 of 2020) [2022] UGHCCRD 143 (15 November 2022) Accused convicted of aggravated robbery based on reliable identification and medical evidence of hammer-inflicted grievous harm. * Criminal law – Aggravated robbery – elements: theft; violence; deadly weapon; participation. * Identification evidence – recognition of familiar faces at night; proximity and lighting as reliability factors. * Medical evidence – grievous harm (CT scan fracture) corroborating use of hammer. * Evidence Act s156 – prior statement corroboration of identification.	15 November 2022
Uganda v Mugerwa and Another (Criminal Session Case 44 of 2020) [2022] UGHCCRD 118 (15 November 2022) Familiarity-based identification and medical evidence established guilt for aggravated robbery involving a hammer. Criminal law – Aggravated robbery – elements: theft, violence and deadly weapon, participation; identification evidence – recognition of familiar faces at night; medical evidence corroborating grievous harm; hammer as deadly weapon under s.286(2).	15 November 2022
Senono v Uganda (Criminal Miscellaneous Application No. 66 of 2022) [2022] UGHCCRD 60 (10 November 2022)	10 November 2022
Kamugisha and 7 Others v Uganda (Criminal Miscellaneous Application 73 of 2022) [2022] UGHCCRD 116 (4 November 2022)	4 November 2022
Kamugisha and 7 Others v Uganda (HCT-05-CR-CM 73 of 2022) [2022] UGHCCRD 127 (4 November 2022)	4 November 2022
Uganda v Mugabe and 5 Others (Criminal Session Case 485 of 2018) [2022] UGHCCRD 115 (2 November 2022) Accomplice confessions corroborated by scene evidence sustain convictions for murder and kidnap; one accused acquitted. Criminal law – Murder – suffocation and strangulation – malice aforethought inferred from manner of killing; Kidnap with intent to murder – asportation and intent; Evidence – accomplice/confession evidence – warning and corroboration; Admissibility and reliability – allegations of torture and coerced statements; Joint enterprise/common intention – participation and liability.	2 November 2022
Uganda v Mugabe and 5 Others (HCT-00-CR-SC 485 of 2018) [2022] UGHCCRD 144 (2 November 2022) Accomplice confessions corroborated by scene and forensic evidence led to convictions for murder and kidnap; one accused acquitted. * Criminal law – Murder – Malice aforethought inferred from manner of killing (superglue sealing of airways, strangulation) and post-mortem findings. * Evidence – Accomplice/confession evidence – charge-and-caution statements and recorded reconstruction admissible where corroborated. * Evidence – Corroboration – photos, scene recovery, phone cover and reconstruction corroborated accomplice accounts. * Criminal law – Kidnap with intent to murder – asportation against will with knowledge/intention to kill established. * Liability – Common intention and joint participation established for multiple accused; one accused acquitted for lack of participation.	2 November 2022