CHEDA J: This matter was placed before me for
review.
The accused was charged with
culpable homicide which charge he pleaded guilty to, was convicted and
sentenced to pay a fine of $800 or 6 months imprisonment.
The facts of this matter which are
common cause are that accused was found with 82 grams of gold in his
house. An arrest was effected by the
police and he was ordered to drive in his own vehicle to the police. On the way he started accusing one Constable
Gono for causing his arrest for an offence which he did not commit. He then threatened to crush his motor vehicle
against any other vehicle on a tree so that he could die instead of going to
prison.
The accused proceeded to drive in a
zig-zag manner resulting in the two police officers jumping off the moving
vehicle. He, however, continued to drive
in that manner and drove straight to a durawall, hit it resulting in one Shylet
Tshuma, his girlfriend dying.
The sentence imposed by the trial
court is grossly inadequate for such an offence in the circumstances. In fact its leniency shocks a reasonable
man's conscience.
Accused was not even negligent but
was reckless. He intended to kill
himself which was certainly in order as the choice of departure from this world
was exclusively his. But, to decide to
embark on such a fatal enterprise in the company of innocent people is an
exhibition of recklessness of the highest order. Both the legal principles which hold the
sanctity of life in high esteem and public policy can not gloss over such
negligence on the part of the accused.
It is for that reason that the court
should have visited such acts of barbarism and recklessness with appropriate
sentence, of which the sentence imposed here does not fall within that
category.
The sentence passed in this matter
is grossly out of step with legal reasoning and cannot be confirmed.
In my view the appropriate and
effective sentence should have been 2-3 years imprisonment effective.
In the circumstances I can not
confirm these proceedings as being in accordance with real and substantial
justice.
I accordingly withhold my
certificate.
