OWUSU v. COMMISSIONER OF POLICE

Mills-Odoi J.S.C. delivered the judgment of the court. The appellant was on the 29th June, 1962, convicted by Judge Amarteifio at the Kumasi Circuit Court of dangerous driving and negligently causing harm to three persons.

[p.114]

The facts briefly stated are as follows: About noon on the 3rd April 1962, P.W.2 was driving an omnibus No. AN 8337 from Obuasi in Ashanti towards Kumasi. He stopped his vehicle at a bus stop on the near side of the road about 28 miles to Kumasi. Shortly afterwards, a driver in charge of a jeep No. SG 4652 drove it to the bus stop and “crossed the bus" thereby making it difficult for P.W.2 to move his vehicle. The jeep driver alighted and made a complaint to P.W.2 that a passenger on his vehicle had thrown a bottle against his windscreen and had damaged it and so P.W.2 should find out who that passenger was.

While the jeep driver was talking to P.W.2 about the damage to the windscreen the latter saw two vehicles approaching the omnibus from opposite directions. The appellant was in charge of the vehicle which was travelling from Obuasi direction (i.e. behind the omnibus); P.W.1 was the driver of the other vehicle. P.W.2 gave a signal to P.W.1 who had the right of way to drive on. P.W.1’s vehicle at that time was about 30 yards from the omnibus. P.W.2 then signaled the appellant whose vehicle was about 60 yards from the bus stop to pull up in order to allow P.W.1's vehicle to pass; but the appellant's vehicle did not stop. When P.W. 1's vehicle had passed the jeep and had drawn abreast the stationary omnibus, the appellant drove his vehicle between P.W.1's vehicle and the said omnibus. The appellant's vehicle then hit the rear off-side of P.W.1's vehicle which went off the road. As a result three passengers on P.W.1's vehicle fell off the vehicle. Two of them died on the spot; the third died when she was being conveyed to hospital. The appellant was therefore charged with dangerous driving and negligently causing harm to the three deceased passengers.

Learned counsel for the appellant in this court argued "that the verdict of the trial circuit judge cannot be supported having regard to the evidence." In support of this contention he submitted that the stationary omnibus left only twelve feet two inches of the road for other vehicles to pass; therefore a dangerous situation had already been created before the appellant drove his vehicle towards the bus stop. He maintained that the situation became more dangerous by the jeep "