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40 judgments found.
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December 1990
24 December 1990
Reasonable doubt on provocation led to quashing of murder conviction and substitution with manslaughter.
Criminal law — Homicide — Provocation as partial defence — Whether prosecution negatived provocation
Criminal procedure — Appeal (first appeal) — Duty to re-evaluate evidence and assessors’ directions when trial judge fails to resolve contradictions
18 December 1990
Civil Procedure|Appeals and reviews
17 December 1990
November 1990
Civil Procedure|Appeals and reviews
16 November 1990
2 November 1990
Multiple reliable identifications by family witnesses upheld; alibi rejected and appeal dismissed.
Criminal law — Murder — Identification evidence — Recognition by known witnesses using a wick lamp at night
nd sufficiency of identification
Criminal procedure — Alibi — Burden and credibility — Prosecution may disprove alibi by placing accused at scene
Evidence — Post-offence conduct (flight) and motive — Limited probative value where identification evidence is strong
2 November 1990
2 November 1990
Criminal law|Evidence Law|Evaluation of Evidence
1 November 1990
October 1990
Conviction quashed where visual identification, circumstantial links and alleged confession were unreliable or inadmissible.
Criminal law — Robbery — Identification evidence — Reliability of visual identification and need for identification parade
Criminal procedure — Circumstantial evidence — Requirement for clear linkages and forensic corroboration (e.g. ballistics) before drawing guilt inference
Evidence — Confession — Admissibility and voluntariness; confession to lower‑rank police unsafe without proper safeguards
26 October 1990
26 October 1990
Accident defence negated by conduct and dying declaration; appeal against manslaughter conviction dismissed.
Criminal law — manslaughter — defence of accident — burden on prosecution to negative accidental causation — dying declaration and post‑offence conduct as corroboration — self‑defence/excessive force
26 October 1990
Appellate court reduced murder conviction to manslaughter where provocation and evidential doubt undermined premeditation.
Criminal law — murder vs manslaughter — provocation (Penal Code ss.187–188) — sudden wrongful act likely to deprive ordinary person of self-control — inadmissible hearsay and judicial conjecture — appellate substitution of conviction and sentence.
26 October 1990
Criminal law|Evidence Law|Evaluation of Evidence
25 October 1990
25 October 1990
Civil Procedure|Appeals and reviews
4 October 1990
Court struck out a defective notice of appeal for procedural non‑compliance and allowed a stay pending appeal where security and preservation of the subject matter were justified.
Civil procedure
— Appeals — compliance with rules for lodging record of appeal and requesting preparation of proceedings — failure to comply renders notice of appeal liable to be struck out
— Stay of execution — Court of Appeal’s discretion under Rule 5(2)(b) to stay execution pending appeal and to set appropriate terms; Order XXXIX CPR applies to appeals to the High Court, not from it
Security for stay — whether security condition was by consent or judge’s order; acceptance of subject-matter (machinery) as reasonable security to prevent appeal becoming nugatory
Restraint order — injunctive relief to preserve status quo pending appeal
4 October 1990
September 1990
11 September 1990
Court upheld four robbery convictions but quashed two for unreliable identification and insufficient corroboration.
Criminal law
— Identification evidence — Reliability of night‑time identifications and conditions favouring correct recognition
— Accomplice evidence — Need for caution and requirement of independent corroboration
Criminal procedure — Conviction safety — Quashing convictions where identification and corroboration are inadequate
11 September 1990
July 1990
Possession of recently stolen property raises a rebuttable presumption of guilt; appellant's explanation was not credible.
Criminal law — Theft — Recent possession — Presumption arising from possession of recently stolen property and explanation required
Criminal procedure — Appeal — Appellate intervention in factual findings — Deference to trial court credibility findings absent error of law
Evidence — Failure to call witnesses — Not fatal; weight depends on overall credibility and explanation
20 July 1990
Absence of consent under Public Lands Act makes lease transfer voidable; controlling authority enforces covenants.
Public Lands Act s.22(5)(c) — statutory consent for assignment/subletting — absence of consent renders transfer voidable, not void ab initio — covenant enforceable by controlling authority only; Lease covenants — breach by subletting without consent and non‑payment of rent — forfeiture and equitable relief; Registration of Titles s.184 — limits on lessee’s right to sue registered proprietor for ejectment; Costs — appellate interference where trial judge misapplied discretion.
18 July 1990
April 1990
Conviction quashed for jurisdictional defect from assessor impersonation and unreliable sole eyewitness evidence.
Criminal law — Trial procedure
— Assessors — Requirement to commence and try case with properly constituted assessors under Trial on Indictments Decree
— Section 67(1) — Proceedings with single assessor permissible only where assessor absent for good cause or cannot be found without undue delay
Criminal law — Evidence — Single eyewitness — Credibility and sufficiency to support conviction
Criminal procedure — Right to silence — Accused’s silence cannot be treated as acceptance of prosecution case
30 April 1990
Criminal law|Evidence Law|Evaluation of Evidence|Review of Evidence
30 April 1990
Conviction based on an inconsistent, uncorroborated sole eyewitness was unsafe and therefore quashed.
Criminal law — Evidence — Sole eyewitness identification — Safety of conviction
Criminal procedure — Arrest and identification — Duty to lead evidence regarding arrest and use of identification parade
Criminal law — Defence — Alibi — No obligation to disclose at arraignment; defence may be reserved until trial
30 April 1990
9 April 1990
February 1990
Appellate court may grant a stay pending appeal in exceptional cases despite absence of prior High Court application.
Civil procedure — stay of execution pending appeal — Rule 41 and concurrent jurisdiction — appellate inherent jurisdiction to grant stay where trial court refused or manifestly erred — procedural forms (s.101 CPA, motion on notice, Order XLVIII).
12 February 1990
The Court of Appeal can grant a stay of execution even if previously refused by the High Court.
Civil procedure — Stay of execution — Concurrent jurisdiction of Court of Appeal when High Court refuses stay.
12 February 1990
12 February 1990
9 February 1990
2 February 1990
January 1990
31 January 1990
31 January 1990
31 January 1990
31 January 1990
Conviction and death sentence for aggravated robbery affirmed based on reliable eyewitness identification and binding defence concessions.
Criminal law — Aggravated robbery — Identification evidence; reliability where witnesses are familiar with accused and assault/corroboration present
Criminal procedure — Defence concessions — Binding effect on prosecution’s burden and limited scope for appellate challenge
Evidence — Absence of recovered exhibits — Not fatal where credible eyewitness identification and corroborative facts exist
30 January 1990
8 January 1990
Whether circumstantial evidence and repeated dying declarations sufficed to uphold a murder conviction against the appellant.
Criminal law — Evidence
— Circumstantial evidence — Corroboration and caution in drawing inferences
— Dying declarations — Admissibility and weight where repeated to multiple witnesses
Criminal law — Burden of proof and benefit of doubt — Appellate review of trial judge’s evaluation of credibility
8 January 1990
8 January 1990
Conviction quashed where medical report and extra‑judicial statement were improperly admitted and evidence failed to prove aiding beyond reasonable doubt.
Criminal law — Evidence
— Section 64 Trial on Indictment Decree — Scope and limits; vital witnesses should give viva voce evidence
— Extra‑judicial statements/confessions — Voluntariness and requirement for judicial satisfaction (Evidence Act ss.24–25)
— Medical reports under section 30(b) Evidence Act — Conditions for admission and necessity to prove cause of death
7 January 1990
7 January 1990
Appeal allowed on four counts for lack of participation; conviction on the fifth count upheld for personal unlawful arrest and intent.
Criminal law — Kidnapping with intent to murder — proof of participation and intent — particeps criminis — attribution of actions to senior official — notorious reputation of State Research Centre — sentencing considerations (age, service, first offender)
1 January 1990
