MAHAMA v. THE STATE

Ollennu J.S.C., writing for the Supreme Court, allowed the appeal of a Cape Coast Municipal Council bus driver convicted by the High Court, Cape Coast, of manslaughter arising from a fatal accident near Elmina. On 12 October 1964, the Senior State Attorney declined to support the conviction. The Court reviewed statutory standards under the Criminal Code, 1960 and Road Traffic Ordinance, 1952, and determined that manslaughter by negligent harm requires an extreme form of recklessness showing complete disregard for human life, and that careless and reckless driving have distinct, specific elements. The facts—an explosion under the bus, loss of steering and brakes, and mechanical failures confirmed by inspection—revealed no culpable act or omission. The trial judge erred in leaving the case to the jury; the case should have been withdrawn, and an acquittal directed. The conviction and sentence were quashed, and a verdict of acquittal entered.