2025
SUPREME COURT
GHANA
CORAM
AI Generated Summary
The Supreme Court of Ghana, sitting in supervisory jurisdiction, granted certiorari to quash a High Court warrant of arrest issued against media commentator Kevin Ekow Taylor (named as "Kelvin Taylor") in the ongoing prosecution of Eugene Baffoe-Bonnie and others. The Commercial Division judge, Eric Kyei Baffour JA, issued a sweeping warrant citing a "scandalous" social media video, directing national security agencies to apprehend Taylor and stating the warrant would endure until he "expires from the surface of the earth." Taylor, based in the United States, challenged the warrant as a breach of audi alteram partem and due process because no summons to show cause was issued and the warrant’s language was prejudicial. The Attorney-General did not oppose. The Supreme Court majority held that contempt powers must be exercised within constitutional due process; bench warrants should follow summons and proof of service, and prejudicial language violates presumption of innocence. Because the order was void, the Court entertained the application despite delay and quashed the warrant. Gaewu JSC dissented, stressing tardiness and discretion.
<u>MAJORITY OPINION</u>
<u>TANKO AMADU JSC:</u>
<u>INTRODUCTION</u>
PROLOGUE
"There cannot be anything of greater consequence than to keep the streams of justice clear and pure, that parties may proceed with safety both to themselves and their characters.” Per Lord Hardwicke in The St. James’ Evening Post Case (1742) 2 Atkins 469 at 472.
(1) On the 22nd day of July, 2025 this court, by majority decision granted the Applicant’s prayer for an order of certiorari to lie against the warrant of arrest issued from the High Court (Commercial Division) Accra, on the 16th day of January 2020 and accordingly quashed same. We hereby set out the reasons for the majority decision.
(2) The case of THE REPUBLIC VS. EUGENE BAFFOE-BONNIE & 4 ORS Ref. No. J1/06/2018, dated 7th June 2018, did not only produce the ground breaking guidelines on pretrial disclosures in further enhancement of our criminal justice system in strict fidelity with Articles 19(2)(e) and (g) of the 1992 Constitution. In the course of the trial at the High Court, the case provoked an unrelated matter to the substantive trial, in consequence of which the trial judge issued a warrant of arrest on KELVIN TAYLOR on the 16th day of January 2020.
(3) The said warrant is reproduced as follows:-
WARRANT FOR THE ARREST OF KELVIN TAYLOR
WHEREAS the above-named case is pending before the High Court, Accra.
AND WHEREAS, the Court’s attention has been drawn to a scandalous video circulating on social media in relation to this case, which video contains an extremely scandalous and prima facie contemptuous speech that scandalizes the Judge, the Court and the whole administration of justice.
AND WHEREAS, the said scandalous video is purported to have been made by a scoundrel who styles himself as Kelvin Taylor, who is not a party to this case.
AND THE COURT, finding it necessary to invoke the powers vested in it under Article 126(2) of the Constitution, 1992, to proceed against the said scoundrel, Kelvin Taylor for contempt.
NOW THEREFORE, the Court orders the issuance of this Warrant for the apprehension of the body of Kelvin Taylor, and for him to be produced before the court, to answer to the question why he should not be committed to prison for making such contemptuous statements which are totally a fabrication by him, in the said video.
***IT IS HEREBY FURTHER ORDE