CLP Law of Evidence notes - Corroboration

This paper examined those cases in which the Evidence Act requires among other factors, corroboration of the existing evidence for the prosecution or the plaintiff to succeed in his case. It also critically analyzed those instances in which the Nigerian court, as a matter of practice, expects an independent evidence to corroborate the existing one for it to determine the issues in favour of the prosecution. This paper also attempted to answer the underlying jurisprudential questions involved therein: What is corroboration? What is the nature and rationale for corroboration in the Nigerian evidence law? The methodology is critical and hermeneutical analyses of the Nigerian Evidence Act and the relevant case law.

The article points out and examines the controversial areas of the Nigerian Evidence Act 2011in comparison with its 2004 counterpart. In tackling the issues raised, the article relies on the two Evidence Acts as the major statutes. Other domestic legislation relevant for consideration include: the Children and Young Persons Act applicable in some States of Nigeria, the Criminal Procedure Act, the Child Rights Act and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended). At the international plane, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Women in Africa are relevant for consideration and comparison. At the tail of the article, necessary suggestions are proffered, including legislative intervention to redraft some provisions of the Evidence Act, 2011. But before delving into the main intricacies, the paper gratifyingly clears some fogs which might hitherto becloud the understanding of the subject.

This work appraises the vexed question of the status of the evidence of an accused implicating a co-accused in the light of section 199 of the Nigerian Evidence Act 2011 and decided cases. It discusses the aim, scope, and development of the principle governing the evidence of an accused implicating a co-accused, with special emphasis on the necessity or otherwise of corroboration, a warning, and circumspection with respect to such evidence. It also discusses the divergent judicial and academic opinions expressed in that regard and concludes by making recommendations as to the best way such evidence should be treated.

Problem solving justice allows a shift from traditional adversarial engagement between the accused and state for a therapeutic process that engages all participants in the justice system. The last decade has seen the rise of a multitude of problem solving courts, and most jurisdictions now contain versions of a drug court and an indigenous sentencing court. However, other courts based on this problem solving model may now deal with sex offences, mental health issues, domestic violence, and community prosecution. This paper considers this movement away from the adversarial criminal trial for a criminal process established around a stakeholder perspective that realises the importance of agency and participation between traditional and non-traditional participants in the criminal justice system, including victims, the police, the judiciary, defendants, the community and service providers.

The prevalence of the offence of rape is on the increase on a daily basis the world over. It seems to be commoner in the African Continent and particularly in Nigeria where gory stories of defilement of young girls decorate the pages of newspapers on a daily basis. One will expect that in a criminally charged atmosphere such as this, the law will be designed to punish culpable offenders and rehabilitate victims. This, however, is not the case. This paper therefore seeks to examine the Nigerian Criminal Law on rape (in Southern Nigeria) with particular emphasis on how the law defines the essential ingredients of that offence, namely: penetration, corroboration and non-consent. It also examines the interpretative approach of the Nigerian courts vis-à-vis these requirements. Resulting from the difficulty faced by the courts when dealing with the corroboration requirement, the paper suggests that the Nigerian Criminal Code be amended to reflect the practice in England under which it is no longer necessary for the judge or jury to warn itself before convicting on uncorroborated testimony of the prosecutrix. The paper concludes by making far reaching recommendations aimed at giving some respites to victims of rape in Nigeria.

This chapter documents some of the legislative and policy developments relating to victims’ rights in Ireland, Internationally, there has been growing recognition of the interests and needs of victims in the criminal justice system over the past few decades, where previous emphasis had been predominantly on the rights of the offender. The result, in Ireland and in other jurisdictions, has been a series of developments which seek to enhance the support provided to victims, particularly in terms of their role as witnesses in court.

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5th Annual Australian and New Zealand Critical Criminology Conference Proceedings, 2011

All children have the right to live in an environment free from abuse and neglect. The safety of children is the paramount concern that must guide child protection efforts. It is in this context that reference of this paper will be made to The Child Act 2001, the key outcome of Malaysia's ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) which forms part of the protective legal environment for children in the country. Initiatives have been introduced under this Act to safeguard children from abuse, neglect and violence such as incest which has been criminalized by the Penal Code and the Domestic Violence Act which protects the child against violence within family. This Act was introduced to consolidate and amend the laws relating to the care, protection and rehabilitation of children. With the Act beforehand, numbers of child abuse cases are still alarming. Therefore, this article is an attempt to give an overview of care and protection provided under the Child Act 2001 towards children who are being the victims of abuse. The main purpose of this article is to evaluate the extent of the protection and care given under the Act to safeguard the children in the social justice system in Malaysia. At the end of the paper some areas are identified for further improvement and future amendment.