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July 12, 2023
HIGH COURT
GHANA
CORAM
This is an appeal by the Appellant against the judgment of the Circuit Court, Cape
Coast, presided over by Her Honour Dorinda Smith Arthur. The learned trial judge
tried and convicted the Appellant on 18th November, 2022 for the offence
of defilement contrary to Section 101(2) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29)
and sentenced him to Eight (8) years IHL. Being aggrieved by the said conviction and
sentence, the Appellant filed a Petition of Appeal on 15th December, 2022 (See page 83
of the Record of Appeal).
This appeal is premised on the following grounds:
a. That the conviction cannot be supported having regard to the evidence.
b. That the learned trial judge erred when she relied on the online article of one
Dr. Charlsie Celestine accessed on 17th November, 2022 to
conclude that the Survivor conceived before 22nd August, 2020.
c. That further grounds of appeal will be filed upon receipt of the record of
proceedings.
Counsel for the Appellant has however filed no additional grounds of appeal. The
facts as presented by the prosecution are that, the Survivor is a student and stays with
her aunty Comfort Aidoo at Kakumdo, a suburb of Cape Coast. The Appellant is also
a trader and stays at Anomabo near Cape Coast. The Appellant is the Stepfather of the
Survivor. During the year 2019, the Survivor’s biological father had sexual intercourse
with her thus, he was convicted and sentenced to Twelve (12) years imprisonment.
Subsequently, the Survivor went to stay with her mother and the Appellant at
Brafoyaw in Cape Coast. A day in the month of August 2020, the Survivor who was
then Fifteen (15) years was dressing her mother’s bed when the Appellant came into
the room whilst everyone was away. The Appellant pushed the Survivor onto the bed,
undressed her and forcibly had sexual intercourse with her until ejaculation which
resulted in a pregnancy. On 29th November, 2021 the Survivor reported the maꢀer to
DOVVSU, Cape Coast, and the Appellant was eventually arrested. After
investigations, the Appellant was charged with the offence of defilement contrary to
section 101(2) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and arraigned before the
learned trial judge.
Dissatisfied with the outcome of the trial, the Appellant filed this appeal on the basis
of the aforementioned grounds. I am therefore called upon to evaluate the entire
evidence on record and discuss them in the light of the appropriate laws. The
substantial issue raised by these gr
AI Generated Summary
The High Court, per Justice Bernard Bentil, allowed the appeal of a stepfather convicted by the Circuit Court, Cape Coast, for defilement under Section 101(2) of the Criminal Offences Act. The prosecution’s case alleged that in August 2020, while alone at home in Brafoyaw, the Appellant forcibly had sexual intercourse with the Survivor, resulting in pregnancy, which she later reported to DOVVSU, Cape Coast. On rehearing, the court re-evaluated the record, noting Exhibit C showed the Survivor’s birthday as 22 August 2004 and the investigator’s and Survivor’s accounts gave no specific date beyond “one day in August 2020.” Exhibit D recorded LMP on 19 August 2020 and gestational age of 11 weeks 2 days on 9 November 2020, indicating conception around 22 August, when she had turned sixteen. The court held the trial judge’s reliance on an online due date calculator and misattributed quote was not probative of conception date. Given reasonable doubt about age at the time of intercourse, the conviction could not stand; the Appellant was acquitted and discharged.