OWUSU AND ANOTHER v. THE STATE

Ollennu J.A. delivered the judgment of the court. The applicants were convicted at the criminal session of the High Court, Sunyani, on 7 March 1967, of the offence of stealing and were sentenced respectively to four years' imprisonment with hard labour and three years' imprisonment with hard labour. From their conviction they have appealed to this court. They then applied to this court for bail pending the hearing and determination of their appeal. After hearing arguments for and against the application, we dismissed the application on 5 May 1967, but reserved our reasons for so doing, and we now proceed to give those reasons.

The one and only ground relied on for the application is contained in paragraph (19) of the affidavit sworn to by the first applicant in support of the application, and is as follows, "That we are advised and verily believe that the learned trial judge grossly misdirected himself on the law relating to admissions in criminal matters."

One significant fact disclosed in the affidavit in support of the application is that the conviction of the applicants is based principally upon extra-judicial statements made voluntarily by them to the police. According to the applicants themselves, as disclosed in paragraph (8) of the affidavit supporting their application, those voluntary statements amount to "admission on our part that we had taken the money which we considered to be a surplus." Thus upon the applicants' own showing, they were convicted upon their own confession of guilt.

Paragraph (18) of the affidavit sets out the grounds of appeal which it is proposed to argue when the appeal comes up for hearing.

They are:

"(a) The learned trial judge's conviction of the appellants herein, based on their admissions, amounted to a miscarriage of justice since there was no evidence that the State Cocoa Marketing Board the alleged victim of the alleged offence had lost the money for which the appellants were charged or any money at all.

(b) The learned trial judge misdirected himself on the law relating to admissions.

(c) The learned trial judge misdirected himself on the onus of proof in criminal charges.

(d) The order for restitution made in favour of the State Cocoa Marketing Board was erroneous in view of the lack of evidence on the record that the said State Cocoa Marketing Board had lost any money.

[p.438]

(e) The sentences of four years 'and three years' imprisonment with hard labour were excessive.

(f) Additional grounds to be