CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ā Trial ā Order of Discharge Not Acquittal Where Trial Is a Nullity
Principle Statement
The court below having held that the trial of the respondent was a nullity, was wrong to have ordered that the respondent be discharged and acquitted. The purported trial is declared a nullity, and the conviction and orders made thereon are set aside.
Ratio Decidendi (Source)
Per Ejiwunmi, JSC, in The Chief of Air Staff & Ors v. Iyen (2005) NLC-123-217-2002(SC) at pp. 13ā14; Paras EāA.
"It follows that the court below having held that the trial of the respondent was a nullity, was wrong to have ordered that the respondent be discharged and acquitted. That order is hereby set aside. The purported trial of the respondent by the General Court Martial is hereby declared as a nullity, and the conviction and orders made thereon are hereby set aside."
Explanation / Scope
A nullity trial cannot result in a valid discharge and acquittal. The principle applies to criminal procedure.
