Rex v Luzala (Cr.A. 158/33.) [1937] EACA 106 (1 January 1937)

COURT OF APPEAL FOR EASTERN ARRICA.

Before ABRAHAMS, C. J., Ag. P. (Uganda), SIR JOSEPH SHERIDAN, C. J. (Tanganyika), and LUCIE-SMITH, Ag. C. J. (Kenya).

REX (Respondent) (Original Prosecutor)

LUTE s/o LUZALA (Appellant) (Original Accused).

Cr. A. $158/33$ .

Kenya Cr. Pro. Code secs. 163 and 164-Contents of judgment—Note of summing up to Assessors.

Held (7-3-34).—That the reasons for a judgment should be written and read at the time of delivering judgment.

Held further.-That the trial judge should make a note of the points put by him in his summing up to the Assessors.

Turton, Attorney-General of Uganda, for Crown.

Appellant absent and unrepresented.

This was an application for leave to appeal against a refusal by a Judge of the Supreme Court of Kenya to grant a certificate under section 364 $(b)$ Criminal Procedure Code.

The following is the judgment of the Court of Appeal:—

JUDGMENT.—In this case the learned judge at the conclusion of the trial took the assessors' opinion and then wrote "Judgment: Murder". A month later to the very date he wrote his reasons for this judgment. We do not regard these utterances singly or combined as a sufficient compliance with the provisions of section 163 and 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

The question for us then is, is the evidence of such a nature that the learned judge's finding of murder is the only one to which he could reasonably come? In our opinion it is, and we dismiss the application.

We would add that it is desirable in all but the clearest cases that the judge should make a note of the points put to the assessors in the summing up, and of the evidence which he has stated as supporting or otherwise each point.