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Uganda Judgment

Court of Appeal of Uganda

Tinkasimire Lawrence v Uganda (Criminal Appeal No. 204 of 2002) [2009] UGCA 9 (9 February 2009)

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01

Holding and result

The Court of Appeal found that the conviction of the appellant was unsafe because it was based on a confession made while the appellant was in police custody beyond the constitutionally permitted period, and there was no corroborative evidence to confirm the truth of the confession. The only witness who identified the appellant did so in court without an identification parade, and the conditions for correct identification were unfavorable. The prosecution failed to provide sufficient evidence linking the appellant to the crime beyond the confession and the uncorroborated identification. The court reiterated that a confession alone, especially one retracted and made under questionable circumstances, cannot sustain a conviction without corroboration. Accordingly, the appeal was allowed, the conviction quashed, and the sentence set aside.

Court disposition

appeal allowed; conviction quashed; sentence set aside

Orders

  • The appeal is allowed.
  • The conviction is quashed.
  • The sentence of death is set aside.

02

Material facts

Parties

Tinkasimire Lawrence

Appellant Counsel: Mark Bwengye

Uganda

Respondent Counsel: Tumuheise Rose

Amounts and remedies

  • Amount Robbed: UGX 308,000

03

Procedural history

  1. Posture

    Criminal Appeal / Final Judgment

04

Questions and positions

Legal issues

Party arguments

Applicant
Counsel for the appellant argued that the conviction was based on a confession not made voluntarily, as the appellant was detained for more than 48 hours before making the statement and was held at a military detach. He asserted that torture can occur without physical injuries and criticized the trial judge's narrow interpretation of torture. He also pointed out that the confession of a co-accused was rejected, and that the trial judge failed to properly evaluate all evidence, relying on prosecution evidence to the appellant's prejudice.
Respondent
The State Attorney conceded that the conviction was based on circumstantial evidence and that the confession was not corroborated in material particulars. She noted that no identification parade was held to confirm the appellant's identity and concluded that it was wrong for the trial judge to treat the confession as true without corroboration.

05

Court’s reasoning

  1. 01

    Cpl Wasswa & another v Uganda, Criminal Appeal No. 48 & 49/99; Muwanga Francis & others v Uganda, Criminal Appeal No. 88/99

    A confession made while in police custody beyond the constitutionally permitted period must be scrutinized for voluntariness; delay alone is not sufficient to reject a confession if it is proved voluntary.

  2. 02

    Ugandan appellate jurisprudence

    Identification by a single witness under unfavorable conditions requires corroboration to be relied upon for conviction.

  3. 03

    Penal Code Act; Ugandan case law

    A conviction should not be based solely on a retracted confession without corroborative evidence in material particulars.

06

Ratio, limits and disposition

Ratio decidendi

The Court of Appeal found that the conviction of the appellant was unsafe because it was based on a confession made while the appellant was in police custody beyond the constitutionally permitted period, and there was no corroborative evidence to confirm the truth of the confession. The only witness who identified the appellant did so in court without an identification parade, and the conditions for correct identification were unfavorable. The prosecution failed to provide sufficient evidence linking the appellant to the crime beyond the confession and the uncorroborated identification. The court reiterated that a confession alone, especially one retracted and made under questionable circumstances, cannot sustain a conviction without corroboration. Accordingly, the appeal was allowed, the conviction quashed, and the sentence set aside.

Obiter and limits

  • Delay in recording a confession by police is not, by itself, a ground for rejecting the confession if it is proved to be voluntary.
  • Torture can occur without physical injuries, and courts should not interpret the absence of physical injuries as proof of voluntariness.
  • Identification parades are essential where identification by a single witness is relied upon, especially under unfavorable conditions.

Court disposition

appeal allowed; conviction quashed; sentence set aside

  • The appeal is allowed.
  • The conviction is quashed.
  • The sentence of death is set aside.

Source and reliance status

Court of Appeal of Uganda

This page organises the available record for research. Confirm quotations, current status, and subsequent treatment against the official source before relying on the case.

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Judgment text

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Source document

Court of Appeal of Uganda

Judgment

[2009] UGCA 9

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\li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 \b\i\fs24\lang1033\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp1033\langfenp1033 {\i0\insrsid12874404\charrsid12472459 \par \par }{\i0\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA}{\i0\insrsid5530623\charrsid12472459 \par }{\i0\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF UGANDA \par AT KAMPALA \par \par }\pard \ql \li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\ul\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 CORAM: }{\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 HON. LADY JUSTICE C. N. B. KITUMBA, JA. \par HON. LADY JUSTICE C. K. BYAMUGISHA, JA. \par HON. MR JUSTICE S. B. K. KAVUMA, JA. \par \par \par \par }\pard \qc \li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\i0\ul\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 204/02 \par \par }{\i0\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 BETWEEN \par \par }\pard \ql \li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\b0\i0\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 TINKASIMIRE LAWRENCE::::::::::::::::::::::::::::APPELLANT \par \par }\pard \qc \li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\i0\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 AND \par \par }\pard \ql

\li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\b0\i0\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 UGANDA:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::RESPONDENT \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 \par }{\i0\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 [}{\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 Appeal from the judgment of the High Court of Uganda Kabale High Court Circuit sitting at Rukungiri (Bamwine}{\i0\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 J) }{ \insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 dated 7}{\super\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 th}{\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 November 2002 in HCCSC No. 115/2000}{\i0\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 ]}{\i0\insrsid1731492\charrsid12472459 \par }{\i0\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 \par }{\i0\ul\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 REASONS FOR THE JUDGMENT \par \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 On 7}{\b0\i0\super\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 th}{\b0\i0\insrsid10583901\charrsid12472459 October 2008 we heard the appellant\rquote s appeal and allowed it. We quashed the conviction and set aside the sentence of death. We promised to give our reasons later which we now proceed to give. \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid3545921\charrsid12472459 \par The appellant herein}{\b0\i0\insrsid9531416\charrsid12472459 with}{\b0\i0\insrsid4026782\charrsid12472459 one}{\b0\i0\insrsid9531416\charrsid12472459 Onesmus

Kishaija were}{\b0\i0\insrsid3545921\charrsid12472459 }{ \b0\i0\insrsid4079147\charrsid12472459 indicted for}{\b0\i0\insrsid9531416\charrsid12472459 robbery contrary to sections 285 and 286(2) of the Penal Code Act. }{\b0\i0\insrsid3545921\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid4079147\charrsid12472459 It was alleged i}{\b0\i0\insrsid4026782\charrsid12472459 n the particulars of the indictment}{\b0\i0\insrsid4079147\charrsid12472459 that the two accused persons on the 31}{ \b0\i0\super\insrsid4079147\charrsid12472459 st}{\b0\i0\insrsid4079147\charrsid12472459 day of August 1996 at Rusheshe village Ruhunga in Rukungiri District robbed Byaruhanga Bernard of cash 308,000/= and immediately before or immediately after the said robbery used a deadly weapon to wit a gun }{\b0\i0\insrsid6567299\charrsid12472459 on}{ \b0\i0\insrsid4079147\charrsid12472459 the said Byaruhanga Bernard}{\b0\i0\insrsid4026782\charrsid12472459 . \par Both accused persons denied the indictment. After a full trial, Onesmus Kishaija was acquitted for lack of evidence connecting him with the commission of the offence. The appellant was convicted and sentenced to death \endash hence the instant appeal.

\par }{\b0\i0\insrsid15097828\charrsid12472459 \par The memorandum of appeal filed on his behalf by M/S Bwengye &Co Advocates contains three grounds namely: \par {\listtext\pard\plain\b\lang1033\langfe1033\langnp1033\langfenp1033\insrsid15097828\charrsid12472459 \hich\af0\dbch\af0\loch\f0 1.\tab}}\pard \ql \fi-360\li720\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar \jclisttab\tx720\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\ls1\adjustright\rin0\lin720\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\i0\insrsid15097828\charrsid12472459 The learned trial judge erred in law and fact through reliance on identification by a single witness when conditions for correct identification of the appellant were unfavorable. \par {\listtext\pard\plain\b\lang1033\langfe1033\langnp1033\langfenp1033\insrsid15097828\charrsid12472459 \hich\af0\dbch\af0\loch\f0 2.\tab} The learned trial judge erred in law and fact by convicting the appellant basing on confession which was not voluntarily made. \par {\listtext\pard\plain\b\lang1033\langfe1033\langnp1033\langfenp1033\insrsid15097828\charrsid12472459 \hich\af0\dbch\af0\loch\f0 3.\tab}The learned trial judge failed to evaluate the evidence as a whole by consideri ng the prosecution evidence to the prejudice of the appellant. \par }\pard \ql \li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\i0\insrsid15097828\charrsid12472459 \par

}{\b0\i0\insrsid7668352\charrsid12472459 The substance of the prosecution case is that on 31}{\b0\i0\super\insrsid7668352\charrsid12472459 st}{\b0\i0\insrsid7668352\charrsid12472459 August 1996 at around 1.00 a}{\b0\i0\insrsid12672133\charrsid12472459 .m. the appellant}{\b0\i0\insrsid7668352\charrsid12472459 and others still at large armed with a gun broke into the house of the complainant and robbed him of cash }{\insrsid12672133\charrsid12472459 Shs}{\insrsid7668352\charrsid12472459 }{ \b0\i0\insrsid7668352\charrsid12472459 308,000/=. The complainant was shot in the course of the robbery}{\b0\i0\insrsid12672133\charrsid12472459 . He was taken to Nyakibale Hospital and later discharged. Among the people who welcomed him }{ \b0\i0\insrsid12334426\charrsid12472459 back was}{\b0\i0\insrsid12672133\charrsid12472459 one Stephen Tumwesigye}{\b0\i0\insrsid12334426\charrsid12472459 an army veteran who asked the complainant to give}{\b0\i0\insrsid6889647\charrsid12472459 him}{ \b0\i0\insrsid12334426\charrsid12472459 the spent cartridges but the complainant refused.}{\b0\i0\insrsid15097828\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid6889647\charrsid12472459 In the course of time, Tumwesigye became a suspect and he was arrested. On the way to the police station he attempted to escape but he was chased and arrested. He told the police that he committed the offence with the appellant. Attempts

were made to arrest him but the police }{\b0\i0\insrsid6567299\charrsid12472459 failed }{\b0\i0\insrsid6889647\charrsid12472459 to trace him }{\b0\i0\insrsid6894403\charrsid12472459 until 2nd}{ \b0\i0\insrsid3092609\charrsid12472459 January }{\b0\i0\insrsid6889647\charrsid12472459 2000 when he was arrested. On being arrested, he implicated Kishaija}{\b0\i0\insrsid3092609\charrsid12472459 . He too was arrested.}{ \b0\i0\insrsid5583844\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid3092609\charrsid12472459 In the meantime Tumwesigye jumped bail and disappeared. As we pointed out earlier}{\b0\i0\insrsid5583844\charrsid12472459 ,}{\b0\i0\insrsid3092609\charrsid12472459 the appellant was convicted on the confession he made before}{\b0\i0\insrsid6894403\charrsid12472459 D/ASP Barutagira Stephen (P. W.4).}{\b0\i0\insrsid4079147\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid12874404\charrsid12472459 \par When the appeal came before us for final disposal Mr Mark Bwengye, learned counsel for the appellant, abandoned ground one of the appeal.}{\b0\i0\insrsid5583844\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid9198524\charrsid12472459 In submitting on ground 2}{\b0\i0\insrsid5583844\charrsid12472459 ,}{\b0\i0\insrsid9198524\charrsid12472459 Mr Bwengye stated }{\b0\i0\insrsid7014738\charrsid12472459 that the}{ \b0\i0\insrsid9198524\charrsid12472459 appellant was convicted on the basis of a confession which

}{\b0\i0\insrsid7014738\charrsid12472459 was }{\b0\i0\insrsid9198524\charrsid12472459 admitted after a trial within a trial}{ \b0\i0\insrsid7014738\charrsid12472459 . Learned counsel claimed that the confession was not made voluntarily}{\b0\i0\insrsid14038353\charrsid12472459 and the trial judg e gave a narrow interpretation of the word torture when he held that the appellant had no physical injuries when he was examined by the doctor. He asserted that one can be tortured without physical injuries.}{\b0\i0\insrsid12874404\charrsid12472459

\par }{\b0\i0\insrsid14038353\charrsid12472459 Learned counsel pointed out that the appellant was taken to a military detach at Kanungu and was confined for more than 48 hours before making the confession.}{\b0\i0\insrsid15416748\charrsid12472459 He further submitted that the trial judge rejected the confession of Kishaija who was arrested on 3}{\b0\i0\super\insrsid15416748\charrsid12472459 rd}{\b0\i0\insrsid15416748\charrsid12472459 January 2000 and made his confession }{ \b0\i0\insrsid5642853\charrsid12472459 on }{\b0\i0\insrsid15416748\charrsid12472459 9}{\b0\i0\super\insrsid15416748\charrsid12472459 th}{\b0\i0\insrsid15416748\charrsid12472459 of the same month. }{\b0\i0\insrsid6894403\charrsid12472459 \par \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid5642853\charrsid12472459 Ms Tumuheise Rose, State Attorney, represented the respondent. In her submission, she conceded that the trial court based its decision on circumstantial evidence in that when Tumwesigye was arrested he implicated the appellant and Ki shaija as his accomplices. She went on to state that upon disclosure the arresting team went to the appellant\rquote s home and they were told that he had just }{\b0\i0\insrsid5583844\charrsid12472459 left }{\b0\i0\insrsid5642853\charrsid12472459 for Luwero}{\b0\i0\insrsid11412316\charrsid12472459 . \par She stated that there was evidence that Tumwesigye was seen with a stranger in the village

where the offence was committed but no identification parade was held to show that it was the appellant.}{\b0\i0\insrsid5642853\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid11412316\charrsid12472459 In conclusion, the learned State Attorney submitted that the confession was not corroborated in material particulars}{\b0\i0\insrsid13376028\charrsid12472459 and therefore it was wrong for the trial judge to hold that it was a true confession.}{\b0\i0\insrsid11412316\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid6971175\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid5583844\charrsid12472459 We accept}{\b0\i0\insrsid6971175\charrsid12472459 the decision of the learned State Attorney not to support the appellant\rquote s conviction as the correct one.}{\b0\i0\insrsid339789\charrsid12472459 The basis of the appellant\rquote s conviction was a confession which he made while he w as in police custody beyond the period of 48 hours permitted by the Constitution. The delay in recording the confession of a suspect was a subject of comment by the Supreme Court in the case of }{\i0\insrsid339789\charrsid12472459 Cpl }{ \i0\insrsid7109160\charrsid12472459 Wasswa}{\i0\insrsid339789\charrsid12472459 &another}{\i0\insrsid7109160\charrsid12472459 v Uganda}{\i0\insrsid339789\charrsid12472459 Criminal Appeal No. }{\i0\insrsid7109160\charrsid12472459 48&49/99}{ \b0\i0\insrsid7109160\charrsid12472459 and this Court in the

case of }{\i0\insrsid7109160\charrsid12472459 Muwanga Francis &others v Uganda- Criminal appeal No.88/99. }{\b0\i0\insrsid7109160\charrsid12472459 Both courts were of the view that the unsatisfactory }{\b0\i0\insrsid6567299\charrsid12472459 behavior}{\b0\i0\insrsid7109160\charrsid12472459 of the police in delaying the recording of the suspect}{\b0\i0\insrsid6567299\charrsid12472459 \rquote s confession }{\b0\insrsid7109160\charrsid12472459 per se}{\b0\insrsid11345772\charrsid12472459 }{\b0\i0\insrsid11345772\charrsid12472459 should not be sufficient grounds for rejecting a confession if it is properly proved that it was voluntarily made.}{ \b0\i0\insrsid6971175\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid12018194\charrsid12472459 \par The appellant was arrested almost four years after being implicated by Tumwesigye who was the first prime suspect.}{\b0\i0\insrsid10893712\charrsid12472459 The complainant did not identify any of the robbers. The only witness who identified the appellant at the trial while he was standing in the dock was Katusingye Angelas (P. W.2). This witness testified that }{\b0\i0\insrsid12995030\charrsid12472459 on 29}{\b0\i0\super\insrsid12995030\charrsid12472459 th}{ \b0\i0\insrsid12995030\charrsid12472459 August 1996 a strange man came into the area and was seen in the company of Tumwesigye. After the r obbery they suspected Tumwesigye and his friend to be the

robbers. He stated that he saw the man whom he claimed was the appellant and confirmed in court that the man he saw was the appellant. However}{\b0\i0\insrsid6567299\charrsid12472459 ,}{ \b0\i0\insrsid12995030\charrsid12472459 no identification parade was conducted for this witness to confirm that the person he saw in the company of Tumwesigye was the appellant.}{\b0\i0\insrsid12018194\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid12995030\charrsid12472459 Apart from the testimony of this witness, the other piece of evidence implicating the appellant was his confession or the charge and caution statement which he retracted. T he learned trial judge found that the statement was}{\b0\i0\insrsid16725178\charrsid12472459 sufficiently detailed and therefore true.}{\b0\i0\insrsid12995030\charrsid12472459 \par }{\b0\i0\insrsid7621892\charrsid12472459 However, there was no corroborative evidence to confirm in material particular that the confession was true. \par We reiterate our earlier orders allowing the appeal, quashing the conviction and setting aside the sentence. \par }\pard \qc \li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\i0\insrsid7621892\charrsid12472459 Dated at Kampala this}{\i0\insrsid9916146\charrsid12472459 10}{\i0\super\insrsid9916146\charrsid12472459 th}{\i0\insrsid9916146\charrsid12472459 }{\i0\insrsid7621892\charrsid12472459 day of}{\i0\insrsid9916146\charrsid12472459 February }{\i0\insrsid7621892\charrsid12472459 2009}{\i0\insrsid9916146\charrsid12472459 .}{\i0\insrsid7621892\charrsid12472459

\par C. N. B. Kitumba \par Justice of Appeal \par \par \par C. K. Byamugisha \par Justice of Appeal \par \par \par S. B. K. Kavuma \par Justice of Appeal \par }\pard \ql \li0\ri0\sl360\slmult1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid12472459 {\i0\insrsid7621892\charrsid12472459 \par }}

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Cpl Wasswa & another v Uganda, Criminal Appeal No. 48 & 49/99

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Muwanga Francis & others v Uganda, Criminal Appeal No. 88/99

Case cited

Penal Code Act, Sections 285 and 286(2)

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