By Momodu Mansaray

What are the Problems associated with wrongful convictions?

Research on seeking the perfect criminal justice system is hard to find. S.K. Brooks and N. Greenberg in their article ‘Psychological impact of being wrongfully accused of criminal offences states that: ‘…. Justice is not always 100% right…’[1]. This means that no criminal justice system around the world can be viewed as hundred percent perfect. The article further states that:

A recent overview of wrongful convictions in Germany found that false allegations, eyewitness misidentification, false confessions and incorrect expert testimony contributed to wrongful conviction. In the UK, concern over miscarriages of justice led to the creation of an independent statutory body to investigate claims of miscarriages of justice.… In the USA, a non-profit organisation called the Innocence Project is committed to exonerating wrongfully convicted individuals through DNA testing and, in 2019, reported that 362 people in the USA previously convicted of serious crimes had been exonerated since the founding of the project in 1992 [2].

In Sierra Leone apart from the appeal process at the High Court, there is no independent institution or non profitable organisation to specifically address this matter of wrongful convictions. The Sierra Leone Judiciary has a very bad record of keeping suspects in detention for a long time without trial and wrongful convictions is a common practice. Those affected are mostly the poor, the uneducated and the young people. These problems have been happening for a long time and it is getting worse. No attempt has ever been made to address wrongful convictions, which have led to prison overpopulation and by extension a violation of domestic human rights law, international human rights law and treaties law.

There have been several attempts to reform the judiciary, but due to embedded corruption within the criminal justice system have led to no positive outcome. The problem of wrongful convictions continues and there is enough evidence to suggest that suspects have been detained for periods far beyond the time they would have spent if they had been convicted. Some of these suspects are on remand charged with minor offences such as petty thefts and traffic driving related offences. Individuals who are suspect of serious offences such as grievous bodily harm, murder, arson, paedophile and rape are in detention without trial.

Lack of fair trial: Undue delay is part of the problem contributing to lack of fair trial and leading to wrongful conviction. The guarantee of fair trial is enshrined both in international law and in the 1991 constitution of Sierra Leone. The Act 14(1) of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) provides that:

… the determination of any criminal charge against him, or of his rights and obligations in a suit at law, everyone shall be entitled to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law [3].

In Sierra Leone, such provision is enshrined in the 1991 Constitution in sec 23 which states in subsection 1 that ‘… any person is charged with criminal offence he shall unless the charge is withdrawn, be afforded a fair hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial court established by law’ [4].

In other words, courts must be independent and impartial in order to be able to dispense justice fairly. It is important to note that the exercise of the right to fair trial commences from the time of arrest to the court decision to sentence.

Sec. 17, sub. (3) states that a person arrested by police should be charged to court within seventy-two hours of arrest. The exception to this rule is someone suspected of committing a capital offence or charged with more serious offences. In this case, the suspect must be charged to court within ten days from the date of his/her arrest.

The above if apply properly, means that any arrested and detained individual should be released from custody if his/her matter is not charged within the specified period. In addition, Sec. 23 of the 1991 Constitution further provides that a person charged with a criminal offence should be afforded a fair trial within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial court established by law.

Poor evidence gathering and contamination: The lack of proper application of forensic evidence within legal proceedings is common. Most police officers in-charge of investigating crime/s are not properly train in evidence gathering and hence there is high likelihood to contaminated evidence, which could lead to wrongful convection. In court, it is about testing the evidence in any case therefore the analysis of key data within any court of law proceedings can help to establish the guilt or innocence of possible suspects. The testing of evidence via scientific, medical, or technological means is problem. In Sierra Leone court systems due to poor funding evidence gathering is a problem that causes wrongful convictions.

Force admission of guilty through intimidation by the police: Section 20 of the 1991 Constitution protects any suspect from any form of punishment, torture, inhuman and degrading treatment. This provision stops law enforcement agencies such as the police from using any form of force that may amount to intimidation or torture in obtaining evidence during questioning or the pre-trial stage. Article 9 paragraphs 2 and 3 of the United Nation on International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, states that:

…everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention. No one shall be deprived of his liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedures as established by law[5].

Paragraph 2, further states that, ‘anyone who is arrested shall be informed, at the time of the arrest, of the reason for his arrest and shall be promptly informed of any charges against him’ [6]. Paragraph 3, affirmed that:

…‘anyone arrested or detained on criminal charges shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorized by law to exercises judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release…[7]

Evidence have shown in Sierra Leone that suspected individuals have been beaten by the police, detained, intimidated and forced to admit guilt under tortured or intimidation. A recent case is an individual who police have arrested, taking to a police station in Bo, stripped naked and told that he was one of those causing violence on the streets of Freetown. The Individual under fear shook his head to indicate admittance in the absence of legal representation.

Undue exercise of Power and Political interference: The Sierra Leone Police Force (SLPF) was created as a Community Security Force and considered as one of the best and well-disciplined forces in colonial British West Africa. However, in recent years, a common phrase from some members within the SLPF emerged and it is “Order from the above”.In the words of a current senior police officer in the Sierra Leone Police (SLP) who wanted to remain anonymous, he described modern day Sierra Leone police force as ‘Institutionally tribalistic, majority drawn from the current ruling political party and operates like gangsters’. In other words, senior officials have gang-style mentality hence gang-style culture with little or no respect for civilian lives and professional ethics. If they don’t like any member of the opposition party, they will go get the individual and detain him or her without charge. The process is called “Order From Above” known to all serving police officers. This simply means a police officer can arrest anyone without adhering to the police professional code of conducts and ethics. Although section 25 gives the police power to arrest a suspicious person it has to be backed with an arrest warrant. Where it is not applicable immediately, such a person shall be entitled to demand that a warrant be shown and read to him as soon as practicable after his arrest. In most cases, the police failed to produce a warrant. According to the latest Corruption Perception Report published by the DFID-Funded PFM Consortium in partnership with the Centre for Accountability and the Rule of Law in Sierra Leone, ‘the most corrupt institution in Sierra Leone is the Police’[8]. The SLPF needs to become a transparent and accountable service that was once trusted by local citizens as much as by the national government and international community. This factor mostly leads to wrongful convictions.

Malicious prosecution: neighbour disputes, the rich has the power to bribe, the police and judges to ensure that a poor neighbour is locked up without due process of law.

Corruption: The legal system is plague with corruption and extortion. From the point of arrest to sentencing money, exchange hands and when this happened wrongful convictions are inevitable.

[1] S.K. Brooks and N. Greenberg ‘Psychological impact of being wrongfully accused of criminal offences: A systematic literature review’ (2021) 44-54, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7838333/ accessed 21 August 2022

[2] S.K. Brooks and N. Greenberg ‘Psychological impact of being wrongfully accused of criminal offences: A systematic literature review’ (2021) 44-54, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7838333/ accessed 21 August 2022

[3] https://www.carl-sl.org/pres/the-arbitrary-violation-of-fair-trial-protection-in-sierra-leone/

[4] https://www.carl-sl.org/pres/the-arbitrary-violation-of-fair-trial-protection-in-sierra-leone/

[5] ? OHCHR, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,

https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx, accessed 14/08/2022

[6] OHCHR, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx, accessed 14/08/2022

[7] OHCHR, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx, accessed 14/08/2022

2022