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Citation
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Judgment date
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| June 2020 |
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25 June 2020 |
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25 June 2020 |
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Applicant failed to show factual, urgent risk to justify interdicting constitutionally mandated public hearings during COVID‑19; application dismissed with costs.
Constitutional law – public hearings on constitutional amendment – urgent interim interdict – COVID‑19 regulations and SI 136/2020 permitting regulated parliamentary public hearings – requirement of well‑grounded apprehension of harm – limits on court’s power to suspend constitutional processes
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18 June 2020 |
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Appellate court upheld bail refusal where missing child witness suggested likely interference, citing section 117 and trial‑stage restraint.
Criminal procedure — Bail — Section 117 Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act — risk of influencing witnesses — missing child witness — ongoing trial — appellate restraint where no record furnished.
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18 June 2020 |
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Conviction set aside where unrepresented accused entered equivocal guilty plea and court failed to comply with s272 and s163A.
Criminal procedure — Guilty plea recording — Section 272 CPEA — Unrepresented accused giving equivocal answers and raising a defence; trial court duty to probe and convert plea to not guilty where doubt arises — Right to legal representation — Section 163A peremptory requirements; failure to explain/record rights vitiates conviction.
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18 June 2020 |
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Applicant charged with Third Schedule murder admitted to bail where prosecution failed to show compelling reasons to refuse.
Criminal procedure – Bail pending trial – Third Schedule murder charge – Magistrate’s lack of jurisdiction without Prosecutor‑General’s consent – Prosecution must show compelling reasons (flight risk, witness interference, prejudice) to refuse bail – Seriousness of charge alone insufficient.
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18 June 2020 |
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Accomplice evidence corroborated by admissions and post‑mortem established common‑purpose murder by recklessness; sentenced to 25 years.
Criminal law — Murder in aggravating circumstances (during robbery) — Single accomplice evidence and corroboration (s 270) — Admissions (s 314) — Common purpose liability — Realization of risk/recklessness (s 47(1)(b)) — Sentencing: youth precluding death penalty.
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15 June 2020 |
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A depository under a gratuitous deposit is not liable for funds stolen in an armed robbery absent gross negligence or fraud.
Depositum (gratuitous deposit) – liability only for gross negligence or fraud; robbery as exculpatory event; interpretation of society constitution clause; court may decide unpleaded issue fully canvassed at trial.
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11 June 2020 |
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Overdetention beyond 48 hours does not automatically entitle the applicant to release after initial appearance.
Constitutional law — right to liberty and 48-hour rule — distinction between pre-appearance detention (s50(1)(d)/s50(3)) and rights at first court appearance (s50(4)(d)); Criminal procedure — bail law — reverse onus under s115C(2)(a)(ii) (Part I Third Schedule offences) constitutionally valid; remedies for overdetention post-appearance lie in civil/habeas corpus/delictual routes; bail factors and s117(2) considerations.
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11 June 2020 |